Shades of Red
by GamesThatTheyPlay
Summary: Lily Potter, daughter to Harry Potter, encounters many different shades of red in her life. Each red means something - but not always something good. Lily loves red, she just has to learn what to do when she comes across a new shade of red.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I do not own Harry Potter, or its amazing characters. Wish I did though.**

Lily always expected for her seven years at Hogwarts to be peaceful and _normal,_ what with the war having ended more than two decades ago. She thought she would just make it into Gryffindor, get on the team as Seeker, pass her O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s with flying colours and earn a few close friends and a lovely boyfriend in the progress. She thought she would just have to deal with her older brothers and cousins watching her every move and especially boys' every move, but she could handle that. She thought that she would just make her daddy proud with every accomplishment she had in school, no matter what it was about.

She never expected the past to begin repeating itself, to risk herself for another, to be looked upon like her father…or to ever truly see these faces in her lifetime.


	2. The Red Girl

Lily was laughing. Laughing rather hard for eight in the morning. Beside her, Rose was massaging her bruised nose, no where near laughing.

"Blimey, Lily," Rose groaned, "it wasn't that funny."

Lily rolled over onto her stomach and stared at her cousin, still giggling into her pillow. Rose's curly hair, a shade darker than the almost orange colour of Lily's, had fallen out of the plait she put it in before bed and was spread out all over the pillows. She was staring right back at Lily, her dark brown eyes squinting in the early morning light that was pouring into the room. Her slightly freckled hands touched her nose one last time before they clutched the comforter of Lily's bed and pulled it over her head.

"Get up, Rose!" Lily laughed, shaking her older cousin's shoulder.

"It's too early, Lily!"

"We should get you some ice for your nose."

Rose sighed, "We wouldn't have to get me ice if you hadn't smacked me in the face when you rolled over. You're so weird. One night you sleep in the exact same position all night and then the next you're all over the place, limbs flying everywhere. You're a deadly weapon, Lily."

"But you love me," Lily replied cheekily, tugging Rose out of bed.

Both girls froze when Lily's door banged open, Lily's older brother James striding into the room with his black hair in its usual I-just-got-out-of-bed style. Lily had to admit that she liked the mess of black hair both of her brothers and her father had; it was something that a distinct trait to the Potter men, like the mane of red hair was to her and her mother.

"James!" Lily and Rose both exclaimed.

"Do you mind?" Lily snapped, "We could have been changing? Knock next time or else you will be scarred for life!"

"Oh, please, Lily," he said, waving his hand, "I helped change your nappies."

"_James_!"

"Well, I did. Anyways, since you're awake I thought I would give you some more pointers for the team once you're made captain and -"

Rose laughed as Lily's face turned red, glaring at her brother, who sat down on the edge of her bed and watched her with the same brown eyes as their mother.

"If you _remember_, dear brother," Lily interrupted him, clenching her hands on her pajama shorts, "I may not make captain, thanks to you. I only have a _chance _to be captain because you put Winchester on the team the same year as me, which means he has as much of a chance as me. Congratulations - the first year you become captain and you instantly screwed things up for me!"

James shrugged, "I was in fifth year - I was young and naïve. Plus, I liked the kid then and you did too."

Lily glared at him, then included Albus in it as he came strolling into her room, rubbing his tired green eyes and placing his glasses on his nose. When he finally focused on Lily, he looked confused as to why he was being included in this glare as well. Rose patted his messy-haired head patronizingly.

"Don't lie to me. You both still like him. James, you think he's a pranking genius -"

"He pretty much is. Even beat me out a few times."

"And _you_ -" she jabbed her finger at Albus accusingly, "keep defending him, saying he's just going through a _phase_. Really? A phase? How more naïve can you be?"

"So, we're talking about Jacob Winchester," Albus observed, taking in Rose's nod, "But Lily, just remember that beginning of last year you told me that he had stopped. Maybe he'll be over it now and you can get back to normal. You two use to be really close - two peas in a pod, as Aunt Audrey would say."

"Yeah, Lily," Rose said, smiling at Lily in a way that made her grimace, "you remember what me and Scor were like at first, right? I wanted to strangle him every time I saw him, but now look at us."

"That's never going to happen, Rose," Lily growled, remembering all the times she had caught Rose and Scorpius Malfoy in school, locked together at the lips.

"It does get annoying," James added, "that he keeps asking out my little sister. That's a downside to him and I won't not hit him, even if I do like him. Nobody gets away with that. Don't look at me like that, Lils - I'm your big brother, it's my job to keep boys away from you, no matter who they are. And look, even Al is agreeing with me for once."

Lily huffed, blowing a piece of long red hair out of her eyes. She knew that. She had known that since her first year at Hogwarts when the Sorting Hat had placed her into Gryffindor and James had announced loudly over the cheers of the rest of the table, "That's my little sister! Stay the heck away from her!" and the cheers of all her older cousins roared loudly. Even Rose at the Ravenclaw table and Albus and Dominique at the Slytherin table, with Scorpius Malfoy joining in with them.

It was the reason why she hadn't had a long-term boyfriend for the five years she had been at Hogwarts so far. No one, absolutely no one, was going to mess with the Weasley clan. And, lucky for her, the Weasley clan wasn't just Weasleys, but Malfoys, Lupins, Scamanders (Luna Lovegood's family) and Longbottoms as well.

The more the freaking merrier.

"So," James said, bringing Lily out of her thoughts, "you should just follow the same routine I did with the team when I was there and you should win every game easily."

Albus was not pleased. "Do you remember James training the team? I do and I wasn't even on the Gryffindor team. They hated him for all the trouble he put them through," he told her, "Getting up at five in the morning to run laps around the Quidditch pitch, practices _five times_ a week, oh and you can't forget choosing the biggest, strongest, most intimidating people. Except for you, but that's just because you're the Seeker." Albus shook his head at James who was now nodding proudly, "No, I think you should definitely just stick to the way I trained my team. Fairly and _normally_."

"Yeah, and let's think of a time when Al's team ever beat mine."

"Why you -"

Rose and Lily both glanced at each other as Albus launched himself at James, knocking him off of Lily's bed and onto the ground. This fight had been happening since Albus and Lily had returned home from school for the summer with news that the captain of the Gryffindor team that had replaced James had just finished his last year, along with Albus, Rose and Scorpius, meaning that the team needed a new captain.

James managed to get Albus's head in the crook of his arm, and was rubbing his knuckles harshly through Albus's hair and across his scalp. Albus was protesting loudly, his hands clenched on James's arm and trying to escape the hold he had him in.

"Admit it!" James yelled, flicking Albus's ear, "My team was always better!"

"Never!"

Albus managed to get his head out of James's grasp and lunged at his older brother, pining him to the ground and proceeding to punch him in the chest. James's face turned red at the first hit, his breath escaping him. Lily thought that she should shout out to Albus as she saw James's leg lift, but Rose grabbed her wrist and shook her head, saying that they should just get it over with. James's leg hit Albus in the back of the head and Lily was surprised with the flexibility of her eldest brother.

"I better not be hearing James and Albus fighting!"

Lily's brothers both froze when the call from their mother, Ginny Potter, echoed up the stairs and into Lily's room on the third floor.

"Sorry Mum," they called back in unison.

**XxXxX **

That night at dinner, the family and Rose were joined by Teddy and Victoire Lupin as well as their two-year-old triplets. When the Lupins came through the door of Grimmauld Place, throwing it open wide and letting the hot summer air into the house, Lily and her family were gathered in the family room at the end of the hall. They all heard the crash as the door hit the wall and Teddy calling out apologies loudly to Ginny. Lily grinned to herself at the murderous look on her mother's face when she had heard the crash; Her mother and father had spent many years remodeling number twelve Grimmauld Place, along with a lot of blood, sweat and tears. Lily knew that the only floor that hadn't been remodeled was the very top fourth floor, which held the bedrooms of Sirius and Regulus Black.

Teddy strode into the room, his arms wide open and hair its usual turquoise as he advanced on Lily and then Ginny with tight hugs, "Happy birthday Lily and Ginny!"

Ginny laughed as she pulled away from his hug, "Teddy, dear, my birthday is August eleventh and that's not until Sunday, today's the ninth - it's Lily's."

Teddy shook his head as Victoire entered the room next, her long, silvery-blonde hair falling over her shoulders and her Weasley blue eyes amused. The triplets followed, Nymphadora running ahead of the younger ones, her long, curly purple hair blowing behind her as she tackled Lily's legs in a hug. Lily looked away from where Rose had just been helping her finish a horrible Transfiguration essay and down at the little girl. Romulus, with his messy tomato red hair, and Andromeda, with her light blue hair in two braids, came in more slowly than their sister and instantly headed over to where Harry was sitting in one of the large armchairs, overlooking the game of Wizards Chess Albus and James were playing.

Harry picked them both up into his lap and Andromeda giggled when he gently kissed her head.

"But Ginny," Teddy protested, "we always celebrate your and Lily's birthdays on the same night. Then on the closest weekend we head to the Burrow for the big party with everyone! You can't just go changing traditions on me, it's not right. They're called _traditions _for a reason."

Ginny crossed her arms over her chest and Lily laughed, watching the pair of them as Victoire joined her and Rose on the couch to watch as well, "So what? I'm not allowed to let my only daughter have a day that's all about her? She's turning sixteen! That's not very fair to her, and we all know how much Lily loves the attention."

"Hey!" Lily protested, fighting the hug Victoire had just given her from behind.

"Don't even, Lily," Victoire laughed, "you're a Weasley and us Weasleys love any attention we can get. Look at Uncle Ron - he flashes the Chocolate Frog card of himself whenever he can. Annoys the hell out of Aunt Hermione - especially when he shows hers too."

Rose grinned, "Mum finally took the cards away from Dad and burned them. She now inspects every Chocolate Frog Dad gets to make sure that he doesn't get his own card again."

Nymphadora giggled as she crawled into Lily's lap from her place on the floor by her legs, carelessly pushing away Lily's essay in hopes that she would receive more attention.

"Ginny, no!" Teddy continued to argue, his arms now waving around dramatically as Ginny attempted to change their family tradition that he held so dearly. The triplets were laughing at their father while James had abandoned the game of Wizard's Chess due to Albus's queen throwing his king across the room.

"Your daddy's silly, Nymphie," Lily whispered to the purple haired girl.

"Fine Teddy!" Ginny exclaimed, "We'll do mine and Lily's birthdays today. But I expect you to come by on Sunday and help the rest of them cook _me _dinner."

"Aw, Ginny!" Teddy complained, setting everyone into a laughing fit.

Dinner that night included all of Lily's favourite foods plus a large vanilla icing cake with red icing spelling out HAPPY BIRTHDAY LILY. Teddy had frowned at Ginny but she only smiled back at him, saying that she had already made the cake and wasn't going to ruin it by adding her name in the only small place it could fit. Romulus and Andromeda instantly dug into their pieces of cake, while Nymphadora instead, again, climbed into Lily's lap and shared a large piece of cake with her. Victoire was laughing as she watched the eldest of her triplets only eat a bite of cake whenever Lily did.

"Hogwarts letters should be coming soon," Harry said as Teddy cut himself another piece of cake, "With your O.W.L. results, how do you think you did, Lily?"

Lily rolled her eyes at her father's unsubtle hints, "When have I ever done badly in a class, Daddy? Just ask what I know you want to know."

"Uncle Harry obviously just wants to know about Quidditch, of course," Rose said, making shapes in the remaining icing on her plate from her cake.

Harry chuckled and ran his hand over Lily's hair gently, "You girls know me well. But yes, as Rose said there is something I want to know about Quidditch. So, do you think you'll become captain of the Quidditch team this year? I know how badly you want it."

Nymphadora almost toppled sideways off of Lily's lap as she turned sharply to glare at James who had just chocked on his drink, "I don't know, Daddy, thanks to your prat of a son," She hissed, poking her fork at her brother.

James held his hands up in surrender, "I already explained myself. I was young and naïve - didn't know what I was doing!"

"And still as stupid!" Lily countered. The triplets all giggled.

"Lily, be nice to your stupid brother," Rose scolded playfully, exchanging subtle grins with Victoire.

"What are they talking about?" Ginny asked Albus in a whisper that carried over the others at the table.

Victoire, Teddy and Rose were all laughing now, having known exactly what Lily was so angry about. When it came to confidants in the family, Teddy and Victoire were the ones that Lily always went to, as well as sometimes Rose. Teddy, having practically lived with the Potters as Lily had grown up, she had seen him as her favourite brother, despite how much she loved each of the three of them. She just loved them all differently. Teddy, along with Harry, had also been the first ones to teach her how to play Quidditch, which earned them a top notch spot with her. And Victoire had been Lily's idol as a little girl. Victoire had ruled Hogwarts and had everyone parting before her like the Red Sea. It was Victoire that Lily would go to so she could rant about boys who were prats and beg for advice, who she would ask for help with clothes, and Victoire was the one that taught Lily the jelly-brain jinx in the summer before her third year; she would use it on Jacob Winchester when she saw him coming and he would be confused long enough for her to escape.

"Don't laugh!" Lily snapped at them, tossing a stray pea at Teddy's forehead, "Don't make me regret ever telling you guys anything."

Teddy's amber eyes, the only part of his and his children's features that ever remained unchanged from their Metamorphmagus skills, shone wickedly as he turned to his godfather, "Lily's being so bitter to James because of a boy in Lily's year that he put on the Gryffindor team. They made it the same year, which means they both have equal chance to become Quidditch captain."

"I am _not _bitter!"

"Who's this boy?" Harry asked, sending a look to Lily that made her groan.

James looked half amused and half annoyed, "Jacob Winchester."

Ginny leaned forwards in her seat, resting her elbows on the table and placing her chin in her hand, "Winchester? The pure-blood Winchesters? He was your best friend in first year, wasn't he?" she asked Lily. The look Lily gave her told her that _was_ had been the correct word to use. "I remember him, he was such a nice boy. But there's more to this than just Quidditch, isn't there?" she asked. But it was obvious of the answer by the way Teddy and Victoire were laughing and James was beginning to scowl, the look he always got when Lily and boys were mentioned in the same sentence.

Albus patted Lily's back comfortingly as he explained the uncomfortable situation to their parents, "Jacob Winchester is a boy who - yes, _was _her best friend - has a huge attraction to our dear Lily. Though she calls him -"

"A girl-crazy, guitar seducing, egotistical idiot of a Neanderthal!"

"He plays the guitar well, though," Rose giggled.

"Remember you're dating my best friend, Rose," Albus warned, "But yeah - she calls him that. It's like…" Albus cocked his head to the side before he chuckled to himself, "Dad, it's like what you told us Grandma Lily and Grandpa James were like in their fifth year! I can't believe I just realized that."

"Aw, Lily!" Victoire exclaimed, fake tears - Victoire was always quite the actress - coming to her eyes, "You're destined!"

The entire family around Lily dissolved into laughter, Romulus and Andromeda joining in though they had no idea what it was about. Nymphadora was the only one that did not laugh, other than Lily, and gazed up at Lily, her purple eyebrows furrowing in thought and her amber eyes curious.

"What funny?" she asked.

Lily shook her head and ran her hand softly through the purple curls, "Just our family thinking it's funny to make fun of me," Lily told the little girl who crossed her arms tightly over her chest and muttered, "Not nice," quietly to herself.

"No, it's not," Lily agreed. She glared at her father, because, if anyone, it would always be him who sided with her and she did not appreciate him laughing at her this moment. Lily had always been a major Daddy's Girl and prided herself on it. Not every girl could say that they were Harry Potter's only little girl. Not that it was always a good thing - it was always difficult to find a good boyfriend or friends that actually liked her for her. But she had enough close friends already - she didn't need more. Lily continued her glaring until Harry finally noticed. His laughter slowly died and he cleared his throat and adjusted his glasses.

Harry still looked much like the old photographs Lily had seen of him, except for the subtle hints of grey that were slipping into his messy black hair near his temples and the faint line of wrinkles around his eyes. The colour of his eyes though, were as green as ever, shining brilliantly that Lily often caught herself staring. She had inherited the almond-shaped green eyes, but she never thought that hers were as bright as her father's.

"So," Harry said loudly over the laughter, "Why don't we move onto presents?"

Ginny was the first one to calm down, wiping a tear out of her light brown eyes. Unlike Harry, there was no grey hairs in her long, red hair yet and she still looked as youthful and beautiful as ever. The only difference of her between now and pictures of her in her teen years were the faded stretch marks on her stomach and the quite large diamond ring on her left hand.

Lily always wondered if she did look as much like her mother as people told her she did.

"Oh!" Ginny exclaimed, "Presents, yes, I forgot. I was so excited to give you your present," she said to Lily. In a second she was up out of her chair and heading into the other room while everyone else tried to sober up from their laugh attacks.

Nymphadora climbed out of Lily's lap as Ginny returned. She sat on the floor by Lily's chair and coaxed Blanca, Lily's white, green-eyed cat of six years, out from underneath the dining room table where she had hidden to sleep. Ginny placed a long, golden wrapped box in front of Lily, removing her empty cake plate. A large white bow was on the corner of the box and Teddy reached forwards to take it so he could stick it on top of Lily's head of red hair.

Overall, it was a fairly good birthday dinner, despite being laughed at by her family. After Lily and Ginny opened all their presents, for Lily a new Black Lightning broomstick from her parents and her brothers and new art supplies and a huge box of blank Polaroids from the Lupins, the group had gone into the sitting room for tea and to talk more until Teddy and his family left and Rose had flooed home. Lily went to bed soon after, wanting to be well rested for the long day she knew it was going to be tomorrow at the Burrow to celebrate hers and her mother's birthdays with the rest of the family.


	3. The Red Engine

**Whoops! Forgot this in the last chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, but will be borrowing Lily Luna Potter and putting her through hell for the time being.**

Too soon, Lily was standing in front of the gilded mirror her Auntie Fleur had put in her room when she was a baby. The summer holidays had flown by and now, this morning, was the day she was to board the Hogwarts Express, alone for the first time. James and Albus had decided that they were going to come with her and their parents to the platform, and Lily knew that it was only because they had seen the half-nervous look Lily had on when Ginny reminded her that it was only her that was to be boarding the Hogwarts Express.

"You look just darling," the mirror said, "Though you might want to fix your hair up a little bit."

Lily laughed lightly, smoothing her hand over her long hair. The person in the mirror reminded Lily a lot of her mother, with her small stature and red hair, but it was Harry's almond-shaped green eyes that stared out at her and the slight messiness to her hair that was a distinct Potter trait.

"Lily?" Harry knocked on the door twice before turning the knob and sticking his head inside Lily's bedroom, "Are you almost ready? We've got your trunk in the car already and James is just trying to get Blanca out from under the back deck."

"Yeah, okay," Lily said, tugging at the hem of her sundress before heading over towards her bed. Harry strode into the room and began to examine the wall that was covered in Polaroids, some from each year Lily had been at Hogwarts and some from before. Harry picked one off the wall and smiled a little to himself. Lily, curious as to why Harry had the bittersweet expression on his face, glanced over his elbow without his knowing and frowned.

The picture Harry held was of an eleven-year-old Lily, her red hair only to her shoulders and a large smile on her face and a flush reaching up to her ears. A boy of the same age stood beside her, his arm around her shoulders and an equally as proud smile on his face. He was at least half a foot taller than her, with black hair and blue eyes so brilliant that they rivaled Lily's green. They both looked haggard, hair messy and soot across the boy's cheek, but they appeared to be feeling pleased and accomplished about something. In the next second, the little Lily brought both hands up onto the boy's head and pushed him down, out of view of the frame and she burst out laughing before a look of shock crossed her face as she fell as well. Lily knew that, out of view of the picture, the boy had tackled her legs.

Lily couldn't help the small grin that grew on her lips as she turned away from the picture and grabbed her Black Lightning off her bed. The picture was taken after her first ever prank at Hogwarts.

Harry placed the picture back on the wall, the Sticking Charm on the back holding it up. He turned to Lily and gestured to the wall, covered from top to bottom in moving Polaroids, "So, where are you going to put this year's pictures?" He asked.

Lily laughed and shrugged, "I don't know, I'll find room, but for now -" Lily took her wand out of the pocket of the white cardigan she had just pulled on over her dress and pointed it at the wall of Polaroids, "_Accio _Polaroids," she said and, before the photos could all come flying at her, held up an empty photo album where the photos all neatly organized themselves inside, "Okay, now I'm ready to go."

She turned to see Harry looking at her, his arms crossed over his chest, "You know you're not supposed to do magic outside of school."

"…Daddy?" Lily was surprised. Harry had never scolded her before for using magic outside of Hogwarts, as long as it was only at home and never in the presence of Grandma Weasley.

Harry grinned teasingly and gestured for Lily to follow him, "I'm just joking, Lily, but…just don't do it in front of your grandmother. She would eat me alive if she knew I was letting you do magic," he told her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders as she passed him. They headed down the stairs together and out to the car where James was placing Blanca's wicker cat carrier into the trunk of the family's black Escalade.

"I'm driving!" James announced loudly, slamming the trunk shut and running for the driver's door. Before Lily knew what was happening, Harry had disappeared from her side and ran after his son, grabbing the back of his shirt before he had a strong grip on the door handle, "Aw, Dad! No fair!" James protested, but they all knew that James had no hope in fighting their father. True, James was Quidditch captain since fifth year at Hogwarts, but their father had also been Quidditch captain _and _saviour of the Wizarding World. Harry was also James's idol and he would do anything for his father.

"Get your own car, James, and then you can drive," Harry laughed, sliding into the front seat while James dejectedly took the back with Lily and Albus.

When the family reached King's Cross Station, Albus was first out of the car and headed inside to grab a luggage cart. Lily climbed out of the car and was surprised when she was almost knocked down by something running smack into her legs and a soft giggling coming from what it was. She looked down to see the familiar head of purple hair clinging to her left leg and felt herself beginning to laugh.

"Hello, Nymphie," Lily said and the large pair of amber eyes lifted to stare up at her brightly.

Teddy was approaching them now, his hands deep in his pockets and an amused smile on his face as he caught Lily's eye, "Dora was up at five this morning. She came in and pounced on me and Vicky and wouldn't stop until we were both out of bed. She really wanted to see you off, since she missed it last year. I would've brought the others as well, but Romy came down with a cold last night. Vicky's at home with him and I didn't bother waking Andy - she sleeps like a log," he explained.

"That's alright," Lily said, bending down so Nymphadora could hook her arms around her neck and Lily stood up, holding the two-year-old in her arms, "You seem to have enough energy for both of your siblings," Lily said to her.

Nymphadora giggled, "Yep!" she said proudly.

Inside the station, it was bustling with Muggles. Many sent odd looks at Teddy and Nymphadora but as soon as Ginny and James caught their eyes with fierce looks, they looked away, trying to make it seem as if they hadn't been staring. Lily set Nymphadora down on the ground before they went through the barrier. The little girl shrieked excitedly and charged through the barrier before anyone could stop her, hands thrown in the air. Teddy yelped and ran after her with James laughing and following. Lily went through the barrier with Harry, helping push her luggage cart as Albus and Ginny followed behind.

"Ready for your first year alone?" Albus said from behind Lily as they headed towards the Hogwarts Express to find a compartment to put her trunk in.

Lily shrugged, staring down along the red steam engine. To be honest, she didn't know if she was ready. Yeah, it was going to be great not having her brothers there, along with so many of her cousins, to breath down her neck every moment she even tried speaking to a boy. But she always looked forwards to Hogsmeade when they would all gather at The Three Broomsticks to share Butterbeers and catch up. The only family that were going to be at school this year were Hugo, Louis and Roxanne.

"Aunt Hermione! Uncle Ron!" James suddenly exclaimed, holding Nymphadora by her hand so she could not run away while Harry and Teddy loaded Lily's trunk on to the train.

"Hugo!" Lily reached out and pulled her cousin towards her to hug him tightly, "It's going to be so _weird_ this year!" she hissed in his ear.

Hugo pulled away, a sympathetic look on his face for he, like always, knew exactly what she was thinking, "You'll be alright," he said, "You still have me and Lou in your year with you - you can deal without your brothers. And I thought you'd actually be relieved that they're leaving? I am - it means that I don't have to compete with Rose now for who gets the better marks."

Hugo was tall, towering over Lily with a lanky form like her Uncle Ron. His hair was curly and the same bright red as Lily's, with blue eyes and a splatter of freckles across his cheeks and arms. Rose was Hugo's older sister and the same age as Albus. She was at least a foot shorter than Hugo, but mostly everyone was shorter than Hugo.

"You'll still never compare to my marks, Hughie," Rose said mockingly as she strode past them to greet Albus.

Hugo glared at her back while Lily sighed, "I am relieved," Lily said, answering Hugo's earlier question, "but then I'm not. How else am I supposed to keep Winchester away from me now?"

Hugo blinked, "That's your only concern?"

"Pretty much, yeah."

All around them, parents were saying goodbye to their children and ushering them onto the train as if they couldn't get rid of them fast enough. It was easy to spot the first years in the crowd, as they were definitely the smallest and most nervous looking. A few people passed by Lily, waving and calling out her name and a greeting. Lily knew that probably half of them were doing it to gain the attention of her father, who was back from the train and now standing with her, while the other half had to at least generally like her.

Through the crowd, Lily spotted three familiar figures making their way towards their group. Uncle Bill, his hand attached to Auntie Fleur's, his other hand secured on Louis's shoulder, was pushing his son forwards, manoeuvring him through the crowd.

Uncle Bill, tall and thin, had a look of annoyance on his handsome, but scarred face. His red hair, once long and pulled back, was now just past shoulder length and hung freely and was greying slightly but still as vivid as ever. His Weasley blue eyes were half closed, darting between the back of Louis's head and the direction in which they were moving. Auntie Fleur, who Lily believed would always look so beautiful, glided beside her husband, long silvery-blonde hair up in a neat ponytail. Her deep blue eyes were amused as she stared straight ahead, one eye closing in a wink when she saw Lily staring.

Louis, if anything, was looking extremely pleased with himself. Louis's face was, the only way Lily could describe it, perfect. It was clear that he inherited mostly every part of him from his mother; from his Veela blood, to his perfectly styled silvery-blonde hair that fell softly across his forehead and over his eyes. The look worked for him, for whenever Louis raised his head, it was the only time when someone could glimpse his deep blue eyes and the look often sent girls into a fit.

"Hey Auntie Fleur, Uncle Bill," Lily said when they reached them, she took one look at Louis's face and laughed, "What'd Lou do?"

Auntie Fleur laughed lightly and patted Louis's shoulder, "We've 'ave been at ze station for no more zan ten minutes. Louis told us zat 'e was going to go on a'ead to find you, but instead, we found 'im snogging a leettle fourth year girl," she explained and Lily noticed how she smirk when she glanced up at Bill, "Bill was not at all pleased, to say ze least."

Louis shrugged when Lily shook her head at him, "Hey, I at least got her name this time."

"That's a pretty big improvement, Uncle Bill," Lily said.

"He should _at least _be dating the girl before he snogs her," Bill replied, "But anyways, are you all packed away on the train? We have Louis's stuff in already. And we saw George, Angelina, Roxie and Fred just over there."

Lily jerked her thumb over her shoulder towards the train, "My stuff is in that compartment. Lou and Hugo will just have to move their stuff there when we get on." she shot looks at her two cousins; Hugo nodded hurriedly while Louis rolled his eyes but nodded as well, "Good, but we better start boarding soon," she said, looking up at the clock to see that they had five minutes.

Louis turned towards his parents to receive a kiss from Auntie Fleur. Lily saw Hugo grudgingly hug Rose when she held out her arms and Aunt Hermione's smiling face. Lily turned herself and was ambushed at the same moment by Albus and James and Nymphadora. Harry, Ginny and Teddy laughed as Lily chocked, her airway closing as James squeezed her too tightly from the side.

"Watch out for Winchester," James advised.

"Don't train the Quidditch team like James did." was Albus's advice.

"Don't go!" Nymphadora wailed.

Lily pulled away from them all, rubbing her sore ribs but nodded. She stared down at Nymphadora and smiled sadly, "Sorry, Nymphie, but I got to go. I'll write to you every week though, okay?"

Nymphadora pouted but agreed.

"Write to me too," Teddy said as he gathered her into a hug, "Vicky and I want to know everything about all those boys that torture you. Although, it will probably only be her that gives you advice on that. Tell me about Quidditch - I'll help you there."

"Can do," Lily said.

Ginny was smiling gently as she hugged Lily, "N.E.W.T. level this year. I won't lie - it's going to be hell. I want you to try hard, okay? But that shouldn't be a problem, what with the results you received on your O.W.L.s. You make me so proud. Oh, and don't do anything your father would do, though. I don't want to be hearing about any adventures of yours," she added, sending a sharp look back at Harry.

"You were included in some of the _adventures _I had in school, Ginny," Harry reminded her, hugging Lily next. He kissed her forehead gently and grinned down at her, "I want to know how Quidditch goes and especially your first match with that new broom. It's the best one out right now, though you don't really need that, do you? I think you're a better Seeker than me. But yes, like your mother said, work hard on your N.E.W.T.s, I bloody well hated those tests. I don't envy you, sweetie."

"Thanks, Daddy," Lily said dryly, but laughed anyways, because he was her father and she loved him more than anything and anyone, "Love you, I'll write soon."

"Love you too, and stick close to Lou and Hugo. They'll keep those boys away from you," he said and gave Lily one last squeeze before he let her go. Lily nodded but Harry didn't see where he went wrong with his words. Lily knew that the closer she was to her cousins, the further the _other _boys would stay away, but the boy in her year, that _one_, who was best friends with her cousins, would always be close by if they were.

Lily boarded the train to find Louis and Hugo both in there and sitting, their trunks and everything moved in her compartment already. Hugo had taken it upon himself to let Blanca out of her carrier. She was lounging lazily on one of the seats, purring loudly, her lean body curled into a ball.

Lily and her cousins leant out the window to wave as they felt the train lurch forwards and the loud horn sound. A few others stopped waving to stare as the train slowly moved past Lily's family. She snorted, but the sound fell on deaf ears for all of the noise that the train, Hogwarts students and families were making. Louis and Hugo gave up waving before Lily did, but she only stuck her body further out the window so she could see her family just a bit longer.


	4. The Gryffindors

**Disclaimer: Don't own Harry Potter, but I do own my lovely OCs who I hope you'll love too!**

**Sorry for the confusion about the family! Here's a family tree plus ages.**

**Harry/Ginny Potter - James (19), Albus (18), Lily (16)**

**Ron/Hermione Weasley - Rose (18), Hugo (16)**

**George/Angelina Weasley - Fred (19), Roxanne (14)**

**Percy/Audrey Weasley - Molly (21), Lucy (19)**

**Bill/Fleur Weasley - Victoire (24), Dominique (21), Louis (16)**

**Neville/Hannah Longbottom - Frank (19), Alice (16)**

**Luna/Rolf Scamander - Lorcan, Lysander (10)**

**Teddy/Victoire Lupin - Nymphadora, Romulus, Andromeda (2)**

**_Hope that helps! but if you want a more detailed version, I have a link in my profile._**

**XxXxX**

"Oh, thank Merlin," Hugo breathed out as the station disappeared from sight, "Any longer with Rose comparing her O.W.L.s to mine and I was going to lose it."

"Did she beat you?" Louis asked, stretching himself out across the seat much like Blanca, with his hands behind his head.

"No," Hugo frowned, "I got O's in all of my classes except for Transfiguration, but that's only because Professor Lamia scares the living daylights out of me, stalking around the classroom and breathing down my neck when I was writing my O.W.L. It gave me the creeps and I'm pretty sure it was because of him that Evelyn Greene passed out during the test."

"Sure she didn't just faint from shock?" Lily asked.

"Shock?" Louis sat up, disbelief on his face, "Are you talking about his looks again? I don't know what all you girls see in him. He's pale and his hair is _way _too long. Longer than even Dad's hair had been."

"Well, you're a guy - that's why you don't see it," Lily countered.

"Fancying a professor, Potter? I don't think that's legal."

Lily, Hugo and Louis all looked up at the door of the compartment and Lily's eyes immediately rolled as she saw who it was.

"You're funny, Payne, real funny," Lily huffed. There was a small list of people that could instantly make Lily's mood plummet, and Hunter Payne was definitely near the top of that list. Hunter was in their year and, like them, a Gryffindor. He was tall and lean with dishevelled brown hair that he shook impatiently out of his deep green eyes. To Lily, Hunter was almost like a dog, always getting into things that he shouldn't be in. But he was also just another stuck-up pure-blood and an idiotic prat.

Hunter grinned cheekily at Lily as he entered the compartment and sat down across from her. "I missed your snide remarks over the summer, Potter. You never even replied to any of my letters."

"They all ended up shredded before they were even opened," Lily hissed, "And did I invite you into my compartment? No, so get out."

The information about his letters only had Hunter laughing. "Shredded, Potter? Really? But Aiden told me you replied to his - but I guess mine ending up in pieces is better than where Jacob's could have gone."

Louis snorted in laughter and even Hugo couldn't fight his grin. This only made Hunter turn his gaze directly to Lily again and cock his head mockingly at her, seeming to have no idea of what had happened to Jacob's letters. In reality though, Lily knew that he knew she always came up with the oddest, most interesting ways to destroy the evidence that was left by Jacob Winchester. He continued to stare until Lily groaned.

"Fine, if you _must _know - some ended up shredded in Blanca's food bowl, some _might_ have ended up in the sink when it was full of water and I threw the rest in the fire as soon as the owl showed up."

"That's harsh, Potter." But Hunter's shoulders and voice were shaking as he tried to hold in his laughter.

"Shut up!" Lily snapped at Hugo and Louis as they both laughed loudly and without restraint, "And you! You came, you saw, you got your answers so now you can leave before I have to -"

"Hey Lily."

"Aiden, no!" Lily moaned.

Aiden looked bewildered as he stepped into the compartment, sliding the door shut behind him. Aiden Forbes was the only boy, other than her cousins, in her year that she could stand. He had a thin face with high cheekbones and a square jaw, and his body was equally as thin but not weak. His sandy blond hair was wavy and he had warm, hazel eyes. When he smiled, which was often, a dimple showed in his left cheek.

"I - I'm sorry, Lily…but what did I do?" Aiden asked.

"You showed up!" Lily complained, "Sorry, but if you're here then that means Payne here is going to stay as well and I just can't stand him."

"You injure me, Potter."

"Oh, shut up, Payne." Lily stood up, ignoring Louis who, behind her back, leant across the seat and high-fived Hunter. Hugo had greeted Aiden and made room for him beside him, for Blanca was stretched out just as much as Louis was and both took up most of the room in the compartment, "I'm leaving. I don't want to be here before my worst nightmare shows up, which he's bound to. Payne, don't touch my broomstick," She added as she opened the door of the compartment and threw a glance back to where her trunk was tucked away, her broomstick lying on top of it.

"And give me my cat."

The four boys glanced up at her curiously.

"What? Why do you need your cat?" Louis asked.

"Simple - I just don't trust Payne around her, and I definitely don't trust to leave her here when _he _comes. So, give me Blanca and I'll be off."

Hunter leant back in his seat where he was sitting beside Blanca and crossed his arms over his chest, "But I don't want you to leave, Potter, so I'm not going to give you your cat. It's simple - she stays, you stay."

Lily blew out a sharp breath as she strode back into the compartment, stepped over Hunter's long, stretched out legs, picked up Blanca who made only a slight mewl before closing her eyes against Lily's chest, kicked Hunter's shin on her way back, and left. She heard the sound of Hunter grunting in pain before she slammed the sliding door of the compartment shut and walked smugly off.

The corridor was crowded with other students as Lily walked through, a few smiling and calling out to her. One boy had had the guts to quickly jump out of his compartment - crowded with his friends who all glanced out the door when he flew out of it to watch - and call Lily back quickly. Lily, thinking it was something important, came back only to become annoyed when he asked her out for the weekend of their first Hogsmeade visit. Hunter Payne mixed with this situation in the span of five minutes had her snapping at the boy who cowered back into his compartment with his friends who only laughed at him. Lily felt bad about the way she reacted as she walked further down the corridor, but couldn't be bothered to go apologize - it would only get his hopes up. What Lily was focused on was trying to find her friends, the Gryffindor girls of her year, before Jacob Winchester found her.

Lily recognized a loud chorus of giggling that came from a compartment just a bit further down the hall from her, but the fact that they were _giggling_ had Lily's feet slowing down. Giggling was not something that her friends did often. Another laugh rose over the others, more deep and masculine, and it instantly had Lily turning around to walk away. She wasn't able to get far though, for she heard the compartment door slide open and then a loud call of "Potter!" that was unmistakable.

Lily sighed, but she stopped and turned around, coming face-to-chest with the muscular, toned form of Jacob Winchester.

Unsurprisingly, Blanca instantly began hissing and wailing loudly as soon as Jacob had gotten close to Lily. For the past year, Blanca had always been flipping out whenever Jacob was close. She took every chance she could get to sink her claws into him, hiss at him or run and stand protectively near Lily, her hackles raised and her back arched. It was odd, for Blanca had known, and liked, Jacob since first year, but the weird behaviour had only started at the beginning of fifth year.

"I don't think your cat likes me very much, Lily," Jacob commented, amused.

Lily glared up at his face, her eyes narrowed as she struggled to keep Blanca in her arms rather than letting her pouncing at Jacob's face with her claws out.

"She has good taste," Lily said.

Jacob only grinned at her answer. Jacob Winchester was easily the most attractive guy at Hogwarts. Tall and strongly built, toned and handsome. There were so many words that could describe him, though Lily's opinion of him was that though he may be gorgeous, he was a complete prat. His hair was straight, brushed his shoulders and so black that it reflected blue in the light, to go with the deep, sapphire blue eyes he had.

Lily noticed a new, still pink scar just peaking out of Jacob's red v-neck shirt.

"Play a little too roughly with Payne, Winchester?" She asked, holding Blanca a little tighter to her chest and trying not to wince as her nails dug through Lily's white cardigan and into her shoulder.

Jacob smirked, "You know how boys can get, Potter."

"I wasn't talking about wrestling."

The smirk was now on Lily's face as Jacob's fell into shock. He instantly covered it and instead placed his arm against the wall beside him and leant against it, "Are you insinuating that I'm gay, Potter?"

Lily shrugged. "Well, you do go from girl to girl. Maybe you're just trying to hide the fact that you are feeling something other than friendship for Payne. You two do get rather…_cozy_ at times."

She automatically took a step backwards as Jacob leaned forwards, bringing his face close to hers. "You know you're the only one for me, Lily."

"And you show that _so _well by shagging other girls while chasing me."

"Just trying to make you jealous."

"It's not working."

"You're bleeding."

Lily glanced down at her shoulder when she saw Jacob staring and was rather surprised to see little spots of blood surrounding the areas where Blanca's nails were still embedded into her shoulder. Blanca hissed madly when Jacob reached forwards to help Lily and he quickly moved away as the blood spread faster, Blanca's nails digging in deeper.

Lily glared up at Jacob. "See what you cause? If you would just leave me alone then Blanca wouldn't hurt me. I think next time she tries to attack you - I'll let her!"

She ignored Jacob's staring eyes as she stepped around him and entered the compartment that he had exited earlier.

The noise in the compartment instantly stopped and there was the rustle of someone moving as Lily closed the door of the compartment and turned around. Blanca purred contently now as Lily sighed when one of the four girls in the compartment stood up to greet her.

Rosalie Valentine was tall and beautiful, due to the fact the she was half-Veela. Her hair was long, to her waist, and a white blonde while her eyes were a stunning silver. Her look would have been innocent and angelic, if it wasn't for the heavy layers of black liner that surrounded her eyes.

"Jacob?" Rosalie asked, lifting Blanca out of Lily's arms and putting her down on one of the empty seats, "Oh Merlin! What happened to you?"

Lily stripped off her cardigan and wrinkled her nose at the blood that had begun to stain her yellow dress. Rosalie hastily pushed Lily into one of the seats and sat beside her, searching for her wand.

One of the other girls in the compartment, Katrina Knox, already had her wand out and pointed it at Lily, "_Episkey,_" she said. Lily's wounds instantly healed and with another flick of her wand, the blood stains on Lily's clothes disappeared. When she was done, Katrina smiled softly at Lily, said a quiet hello and disappeared behind the book in her lap. Her brown hair was pulled back away from her face and her slanted blue eyes following whatever she was reading, behind a pair of black wire frame glasses.

"Thanks, Kat," Lily said, pulling her cardigan back on, "And you could say that Jacob did this to me," Lily told Rosalie, "What was he doing in here anyway?"

Alice Longbottom, a round faced girl with long, curly blonde hair and wide brown eyes, leaned forwards in her seat, "He hurt you? Jacob would never hurt you though!" her face was so shocked and worried that Lily felt sorry for her naïve dorm mate. She had known Alice longer than any other of her friends, for Alice was the youngest child of Neville and Hannah, who also had a son named Frank, who was James's age.

Phoenix Blair sighed exasperatedly at Alice. Phoenix had no sense of patience, and the blonde girl was constantly on Phoenix's last nerve. Her wavy hair was long and black, her eyes a bright violet. Phoenix was attractive and she knew it, having started dating when they were in second year and going through at least six boyfriends a year.

Phoenix gestured to the content cat that was resting on the seat. "Blanca, remember?" she said to Alice, who flushed in embarrassed understanding and nodded.

"And he was just in here to say hello," Rosalie told Lily, "Unlike you, we actually like him. He's our friend. Well…after I dated him in fourth year he was my friend. Merlin that was a disaster."

"You should have kept dating him," Lily pouted, "It was the only time he ever left me alone. Most amazing three weeks of my life."

"He only didn't go after you those weeks because he was afraid that I would go all Veela on his ass," Rosalie retorted, laughing, "I'm a half-Veela, he should know that I can't just conjure up fireballs and throw them at his head."

"If only you could," Lily sighed wistfully.

"Come off it, Lily," Phoenix huffed, "You'd never hurt Jacob if you had the chance. You make it seem like you hate him but you actually don't. You miss him, just admit it already. It gets kind of annoying after something has been going on for…oh, I don't know - four or so years now."

Lily could see Katrina's eyebrows raise from where she was hidden behind her book. Alice comically clapped her hands over her mouth, wide eyed and astonished, that Phoenix had actually said those words or the meaning behind them, Lily didn't know. Rosalie only glared at Phoenix. The two girls were the best of friends, closer to Lily than the three of them were with Alice or Katrina, but sometimes their personalities clashed and it turned messy. Many people knew to keep their distance when the three Gryffindor girls were at it.

"Oh sod off, Phoenix!" Rosalie snapped before Lily could do anything or even get mad at what Phoenix was suggesting, "You're just jealous that Jacob ditched you last year for Lily."

Phoenix's look was murderous until her face turned to a dreamy smile, "Ah, Jacob Winchester. He'll always be the one that got away."

Quite suddenly, Rosalie and Phoenix were both laughing while the other three girls were confused beyond belief. Lily guessed that they acted this way at times was because of Jacob. Once they dated him, he did something to their heads that made them rather insane at times.

But then Lily thought about what Rosalie had said, "Wait, what? I thought you ditched him, Feens? And he barely even talked to me last year, so why the bloody hell would he ditch you for me?"

Phoenix shook her head, the waves of her hair moving, "I just told you that I ditched him. I was planning to, but he beat me to it."

Rosalie playfully nudged Lily's shoulder, then paused. She glared at the third year boys that slowed down to stare into their compartment and they quickly went scurrying away, "She wanted to ditch him because he was staring at you all the time. He ditch her because of you. It's so easy to tell with him - he's like an open book. Always an interesting story to read though. Fascinating."

"Wish I could read him so well. Then I'd find out what he doesn't like and I'd make sure that I was all of it. I'd turn him completely off of me."

Alice cocked her head and looked at Lily quizzically, "But he likes everything about you, Lily. You could never turn him off."

This sent Rosalie and Phoenix laughing again.

"Face it, Lily, Jacob's basically in love with you."

Lily, shocked into silence that Katrina said that, could only glare at the girl.

**XxXxX**

**There! You've now met dear, loving Jacob. Hehe...**

**Now, review please! They make my day.**


	5. A New Gryffindor

Near the end of the ride to Hogwarts, Lily had taken the other girls with her to the other compartment that held the boys so she could grab her uniform and robes from her trunk to change into. The four girls smirked and laughed when Lily entered the compartment and Jacob's face had instantly lightened at the sight of her.

Up at the castle, Lily relaxed in her seat between Rosalie and Phoenix. Lily always felt calmer at Hogwarts, not surrounded by her large family. She loved her family but they brought out the craziness in her. The only thing that ever made her crack at Hogwarts was Jacob Winchester…and the Slytherins in her year…and her cousins…and Hunter Payne…and losing a Quidditch match…

Okay, a lot made her crack - but Jacob Winchester would always be at the top of that list.

Lily was starving but, like every year, she was more excited to see the Sorting than having the feast. The three legged stool was already out with the Sorting Hat, a decrepit looking Wizard's hat, resting on top of it, looking rather mundane and normal though everyone in the Great Hall knew better. Professor McGonagall, her hair as white as Blanca and pulled back tightly, sat in the throne like chair in the center of the staff table, her back straight and mouth in a thin line that pulled her numerous wrinkles down.

Professor Scarta, Deputy Headmaster and Care of Magical Creatures professor, stood by the stool with a scroll in his one hand, staring down along the first years that were lined up in front of him. Professor Scarta was tall and intimidating with large arms and broad shoulders. His black hair, slightly graying, was long and tied back in a ponytail with a thin, completely black mustache. His skin was dark, which made his shock of silver eyes that much brighter.

Lily heard Rosalie chuckle as the first years all cowered back when the Sorting Hat suddenly burst into song and was followed right after by Professor Scarta's booming voice, "Come up and sit on the stool and place the Sorting Hat on your head after I call your name," he said and glanced down at the parchment he held. "Ackerly, Jonathan!"

The plump boy in the line jumped at the sound of his name and stumbled towards the stool. Lily grimaced as the stool creaked under his weight and a few of the other students laughed, but instantly stopped when Professor Scarta glared. The tear in the Hat's brim that was actually its mouth was opened a little, considering. Finally, after a minute it called out "RAVENCLAW!" and Jonathan Ackerly took off the Hat and went scrambling towards the Ravenclaw table, his face red.

"I hope we get some good Gryffindors this year," Rosalie whispered to the girls.

Phoenix nodded. "Last years were _so _disappointing. I was able to see their first flying lesson - it was pitiful. Not even one could get their broom off the ground. Good luck with finding us a good Quidditch team this year, Lily."

Lily stuck her tongue out at the black-haired girl who made a move to grab it with her fingers.

"Wait, you made captain, Lily?" Alice asked, doing a once over of Lily's robes but not seeing the gleaming silver captain's badge. Lily grinned and pulled the badge out of her pocket, showing it to the other girls and feeling quite proud. Her family had had the same feeling when she had shown everyone at the summer-ending dinner at the Burrow and her brothers had instantly clapped her on the back while her father hugged her. James had been the happiest though, for he knew that Lily would now get off his back about letting Winchester on the team.

"Nice badge, Potter."

Lily glanced down the table. Sitting four seats away were the boys, Hunter giving her a thumbs up. Lily tucked the badge away in her pocket again and glared at him as "Francis, Liam!" was called.

"I think our competition will be distracted this year," Jacob said, "because we're going to have the most gorgeous captain."

"Ew, just stop, Winchester!" Lily snapped, louder than she meant to, for she saw Professor Scarta's mouth twitch up as he was watching Liam Francis being Sorted.

Katrina leaned across the table and touched Lily's arm. "Ignore him, Lily. You're just calling attention to yourself. But anyways, it shouldn't have been a surprise that you were chosen to be captain. Both your brothers and your dad were captains and you are one Professor Rosewood's favourite student and she chooses who is captain for the team for Gryffindor."

Lily stared up at the staff table and saw Professor Rosewood in her usual spot next to Professor McKnight, the Ancient Runes professor. Professor Rosewood was young, blonde and pretty with a kind face, blue eyes and always wore stylish robes in many shades of red. She was the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, and the Head of Gryffindor house after Neville Longbottom, Herbology Professor and one of Lily's family friends, had refused the job saying that he was done leading for the rest of his life; the Second Wizarding War was enough for him.

"Gilbert, Alexander!"

A small boy with messy blond hair darted towards the stool and stuffed the Hat down onto his head. The boy made Lily grin - he was probably the only one that was not nervous in his class of first years. After a few seconds, Lily cheered loudly along with the rest of the Gryffindor table as the Hat called out "GRYFFINDOR!" for the first time and Alexander Gilbert beamed at the applause. He almost tripped running down the steps and towards the table, but a hand caught him and pulled him upright and into the seat next to them. Lily groaned when she saw that it had been Jacob Winchester's hand. Alexander Gilbert had just officially gotten himself screwed. Hugo, Louis, Hunter and Aiden all greeted the blond cheerfully, patting him proudly on the back and looking like James had when she was sorted into Gryffindor.

When the Sorting was finished, Professor Scarta picked up the stool and Sorting Hat and walked away while Professor McGonagall stood and caught everyone's attention. The Hall fell silent.

"Welcome to all our new students," she said, her hand holding tightly onto her walking stick, "and welcome back to all our returning students. Enjoy the feast."

Rosalie was already reaching for a plate even before the food had appeared. When it did, her hand was hovering over a plate of chicken legs and she quickly snatched some up and placed them on her plate.

As usual, the feast was amazing and all the girls were done before Rosalie, who had taken not only seconds but thirds as well. Lily pegged it down to Rosalie being half-Veela that she was able to eat so much and still look so thin. There was no such thing as a fat Veela.

Once again, Professor McGonagall stood. "I have a few start-of-term notices to give before I send you off to bed. First is, as you all should know by now, that the Forbidden Forest is off limits to _everyone_." Many students sunk down in their seats at the sharp look she sent around the Hall. "Second, the bathrooms on the fourth floor are still closed down from last year, due to the toilets erupting whenever someone tries to use them."

It was Lily this time that tried to hide herself away from Professor McGonagall's gaze, but Rosalie and Phoenix laughing loudly did nothing to help her seem at all inconspicuous. No, Professor McGonagall's green eyes zeroed in on Lily and she fought the urge to yell out that Louis had helped her with the prank. Though, after a second, Professor McGonagall's eyes held something different that made Lily breath out a sigh in relief. Lily knew that Professor McGonagall had a sense of humour and the fact that she found Lily's prank amusing made Lily look up to her Headmistress just a little bit more.

Professor McGonagall sighed, the breath coming out annoyed, as she slipped her wand out of her emerald green robes. "Finally, before I send you off to bed - _some _of the other professors -" Professors Rosewood and Rabidus both grinned while Professor McKnight shifted in his seat uncomfortably, "- have requested that I let you all sing the school song this year, as I seemed to have forgotten the last two years. So, first years, follow along with the words and everyone sing at your own tempo."

A music staff of gold drifted out of the tip of Professor McGonagall's wand and words appeared below the staff as everyone began to sing. The voices of the sixth year Gryffindor boys rose above all those of the rest and Lily nudged Phoenix in the arm. Phoenix rolled her eyes but grinned and soon the Gryffindor sixth years were fighting to make their voices heard over each other.

When the song finished, Professor McGonagall tucked her wand away and said, "Now, off to bed with all of you," and walked towards the Great Hall doors, everyone waiting for her to pass before they stood to leave as well. Katrina stood and called all the first years over to her, her silver prefect badge catching their attention.

"I'll see you all up in the dormitory," she said as she left.

Aiden, the other sixth year Gryffindor prefect, caught up behind the last of the first years and pointed his thumb over his shoulder at the five remaining boys sitting at the table. Lily rolled her eyes and stood, heading over to where Jacob, Hugo, Louis and Hunter were still sitting, Alexander Gilbert staring at them in awe. Rosalie, Phoenix and Alice trailed along behind her, Alice looking reluctant and rather like she would want to head up to the common room with Katrina and Aiden. However, Alice had a memory like Neville and could never remember the passwords.

As they drew closer to the boys, Lily was able to hear some of what the four boys were telling the first year.

"When it comes to girls at Hogwarts, you have to be careful of which ones you go after," Hunter was saying, "Slytherin girls are downright cruel and can be scary. The Hufflepuff girls can get rather clingy, but they're just being Hufflepuffs, so only go for them if you're actually looking for something long term."

"The Hufflepuff girls aren't bad, Hunt," Hugo said, "And some of the Slytherin girls are actually quite nice."

"Not many though," Louis added.

Hugo frowned at his cousin. "Mate, your contradicting me!"

"Anyways Alex," Jacob turned to the blond boy, "Ravenclaw girls - they can get annoying. Totally smart and righteous. Use all sorts of big words and they got this superior attitude that I cannot stand. No, when it comes to girls, the best to pick from would be the Gryffindor girls. They take risks, they do what they want, they're not afraid of a quick shag in a broom cupboard - pretty much they're the perfect girls."

Louis and Hugo both looked disgusted while Hunter roared with laughter.

"Merlin, Jake," Louis groaned. "I swear if you're suggesting that's what Lily does then you're about to have my dinner all down the front of your robes."

Lily suddenly struck Jacob around the back of the head. "It better not be me that you're talking about. And don't tell an eleven-year-old about shagging!"

"Of course not, Lily!" Jacob said quickly. "You're too pure for people to even think about a shag with you! They burst into flames at the thought! Alex, this is Lily Potter, the most amazing girl you will ever meet. And the Gryffindor Quidditch captain, which is extremely sexy, I love a woman in charge."

Rosalie and Phoenix both burst out laughing, holding onto each other, as Jacob spoke and Lily scowled back at them. "Enough, Winchester. Why can't you act like you did last year and not bug me? I actually started to stand you last year, you were quiet. I rather enjoyed it."

Lily was surprised when Jacob suddenly looked irritated at her and turned his back on her to look down at Alex. "See, kid? Not afraid to take risks and say what they want, no matter what it might cause." He looked back up at Lily, a smile on his lips but his blue eyes dark. "Had some issues last year, _Potter_. But I'm over it now, so I'm back to acting like me, which means that you're back on my list."

"And what list would that be?" Lily asked.

"My list of things to do."

Hugo and Louis groaned in unison just before Lily's hand smacked Jacob's face. "You are disgusting, Winchester!" Lily snapped and turned on her heel, grabbing Rosalie and Phoenix's arms to pull them away with her. "By the way, Quidditch try-outs are next Saturday. Good luck - you're going to need it."

"Lily, you didn't need to hit him," Alice said as they climbed the stairs up to the Gryffindor common room, Lily still seething while the other two girls continued to laugh and mimic the face Jacob had on after Lily slapped him. "I think you really hurt him - and not just physically."

"Oh, please, Alice!" Lily said, exasperated, "Jacob Winchester is not capable of _feeling_. He's probably laughing with Hunter right now about how much he was able to rile me up. Winchester was only sent here to make my life hell. Oh I can't believe him! How _dare_ he say those things about me! And he had _issues_? Yeah right! He's just trying to make people feel for him because he _can__'__t_!"

Rosalie placed her arm around Lily's shoulders. "Lily, you're as red as your hair right now."

"Shut up!"

"Calm down, Lily," Phoenix said calmly, but she was still giggling a little. "You're blowing this out of proportion. Maybe he did have things to deal with. Just let it go and let's go up to the dorm, I'm exhausted."

"Whatever."

When they were in the common room, Phoenix, Rosalie and Alice all went up to the dorm while Lily noticed Aiden and went over to him, telling the others she would be up soon. Aiden was sitting amongst a group of two first year girls and one boy who were hanging off every word he was saying. Lily listen for a minute, discovering that he was telling them about the classes and by the looks of the three, so engrossed by the words that came out of Aiden's mouth, she could tell that they were Muggle-born.

"Hey," Lily said, sitting down beside Aiden. The three first years looked up at Lily in awe and Lily instantly knew that Aiden must have told them something about the Wizarding Wars and her father, or they were just like her Aunt Hermione and had read books before they had come to Hogwarts.

"You'll find out more tomorrow when classes start," Aiden said to the kids, sending them away before he turned to Lily. "I was just bombarded by them. The one boy read all about your dad and must have told the girls once he saw you at the feast," he explained, looking amused. "But something's on your mind, I can tell. Come on, tell me."

Lily blew a piece of her hair out of her eyes. "I hate that everyone just _knows_ with me, I'm so transparent."

"To be honest," Aiden now looked sheepish. "I can only tell because Jacob always points it out when you have that look on your face."

Lily glowered at him. "Anyways, Winchester is what I wanted to talk to you about and don't look at me like that. I'm just curious." she paused, looking down at her hands before she met his hazel eyes again. "I know you noticed how Winchester acted last year - different, quiet, so…not him. He just told me that he had…_issues _to deal with last year and I was wondering if you -"

Aiden shook his head before Lily could even finish what she was saying. "I admit that I did notice how he was acting, but not even Hunter knows what was going on. I think it may have had something to do with his family because he disappeared for awhile sometimes. And you know about his parents; they still believe in that pure-blood supremacy rubbish. Trust me, Lily, if it was really important, he would have told Hunter or me, at least."

"Yeah…I guess." Lily stood, yawning. "I'm going to go to bed, night Aiden."

"Night."

"Oh, and Aiden?" Lily asked as she started to walk away.

"Yeah, Lily?"

"We never had this conversation."

"Gotcha."


	6. The Slytherins

**Disclaimer: I'm so horrible at remembering these things, but I don't own Harry Potter! **

"Stupid friends. I can't believe they just left for breakfast without me. Obviously, I picked the wrong people to hang around with. Why am I stuck with them? Stupid friends, just stupid. They just - Oomph!"

Lily's rant was cut off by her slamming into a hard chest that started to shake underneath her fingertips. Righting herself, her blurry eyes glanced up into the amused face of Willard Schell, a seventh year Gryffindor. Will, as he preferred to be called, was tall and hard with muscle, his skin a copper colour and his short black hair in its usual on end style. His smouldering eyes were the same colour as Teddy's hair normally was: turquoise.

"Merlin, Will!" Lily exclaimed, leaping forwards the hug the older boy.

Will laughed, hugging Lily back before holding her at arms length. "What were you talking to yourself about a minute ago?"

Lily blushed, something that caught her as odd for she barely ever blushed, but looking up at Will, she could see why she had. "Oh, my friends. They went down to breakfast without waking me. I hate it when they do that."

Will shook his head, his face sympathetic. "I know the feeling, dear Lily, it seems that my mates have left me too. So, I guess this gives me the chance to escort you down to breakfast. May I have the honour?" he moved to stand beside her and bent down so he was eye level, holding his arm out to her.

Lily blushed again and looped her arm through his. "Lead away."

When they neared the Great Hall, Lily glanced up at Will. "Are you going to come to Quidditch try-outs? I'm captain and I could really use some new talent. I've never seen you play before."

Will seemed to consider it. "Maybe I will come. I play at home and I think I'm good enough, so yeah. When are the try-outs?"

"Next Saturday," Lily said, beaming up at him as he nodded.

"I'll be there," he said and suddenly took his arm back as they reached the Gryffindor table. Lily could see her four roommates eating their breakfast a few feet away. "And this is where I leave you, dear lady."

Lily shook her head and rolled her eyes, laughing. "See you, Will."

Will's hand ran across her shoulders as he passed to head down to the opposite end of the table where Lily could see the other seventh year boys sitting. She dropped down into the seat beside Katrina who looked at her with raised eyebrows as she leaned her book against the jug of orange juice. Lily looked away from her and began piling food onto her plate, the blush still in her cheeks. She could feel the gazes of the other three girls as well, but decided against lifting her head as she moved Katrina's book, poured herself some orange juice, and placed the book back against the jug again.

"Sorry we didn't wake you," Rosalie suddenly said, her voice light. "But it seems like it was a good idea now. You looked rather cozy with Will."

"Don't deny it!" Phoenix grinned triumphantly as Lily began to open her mouth to reply. "You're blushing - you enjoyed it."

"You're lucky, Lily," Alice sighed, looking over to where Will was sitting. "He's so gorgeous. I want a gorgeous boy."

Lily patted Alice's hand sympathetically. "You need to be able to talk to a boy first, Alice. And besides, I don't have a gorgeous boy. I have Will as a friend, there's a big difference."

"You don't just blush over friends, Lily," Katrina commented. "and - oh, here comes Professor Rosewood with the schedules."

"Good morning, girls," Professor Rosewood said brightly, stopping beside Lily and lying her hand on Lily's shoulder. "Now, which classes do you want to take this year?"

After all the girls had told her their classes - Lily dropping only History of Magic and Astronomy so her schedule still left her with no free periods - and she arranged their schedules, she looked down at Lily. "Are you excited to be captain this year? I thought you would be the best choice. To admit, Hunter Payne I had not considered because he was on the team a year less than you were and Jacob Winchester…well, after last year I decided that you would be the best candidate. I know you'll be able to lead the team to victory this year."

Lily's interest was peaked. "Last year?" she asked, feigning not knowing what Professor Rosewood was speaking off. "What happened to Jacob last year?"

"Nothing, nothing," Professor Rosewood said. "Nothing to worry about. Anyways, I will be coming to the try-outs to observe. I hope the ones attending will be talented."

And she walked away before Lily could speak.

"What have we got first?" she asked instead, glancing down at her schedule.

"I've got Potions," Rosalie said, which was only confirmed by Katrina and Lily.

"I'm in Arithmancy," Phoenix said, shrugging when the girls looked at her. "What? I'm good with numbers and I hated Potions."

"I have a free period, so I'm going to nap," Alice said, gathering up her bag. "Then we all have Herbology together, right?"

**XxXxX**

Lily trailed behind Rosalie and Katrina as she struggled to stuff her Potions book into her bag. The book slipped from her hands and fell and when Lily bent down to pick it up, she looked around to see that Rosalie and Katrina were gone. She quickly put the book into her bag and stood, ready to sprint to class when a voice behind her made her stop while her heart quickened in expectation.

"Look, Hiro, Potter is all alone. Where's your guard dog, Potter?"

Lily turned slowly, clutching her bag to her side, her hand still deep inside it and subtly rummaging around to find her wand as the two Slytherin boys smiled wickedly.

Kaelan Goyle and Hiro Takeshi were the two most violent boys at Hogwarts. They reminded Lily of the Death Eaters from the stories her father had told her about the Second Wizarding War. Two of the purest pure-bloods, Kaelan was very burly and very intimidating with too long brown hair and odd yellow eyes while Hiro was long and lean, with neat, sandy blonde hair and slanted dark eyes. Lily was suspicious as to why their gathering of equally as cruel Slytherin girls weren't with them.

"What do you want, Goyle?" Lily snapped, her hand closing around her wand.

Kaelan gave a nasty laugh and nudged Hiro's arm, "The little kitten is trying to seem tough, isn't that adorable?" he stared around, "So where is your crowd of protectors, Potter? You're so…_vulnerable _without them."

Hiro sniggered as Kaelan began to walk towards Lily. In response, she quickly ripped her wand out of her bag and pointed it directly at Kaelan's chest. This only seemed to amuse him as he stepped closer, pressing his chest against the tip of her wand. Lily waited, wondering if he was going to do anything, for she was not one that would use magic on someone without reason. Despite keeping up her tough exterior, Lily was hoping, _praying_ that someone would come along and see them. It was common knowledge at Hogwarts that Kaelan was an expert dueler while Hiro had the reflexes of a cat. Her heart was beating faster than before, because she could see Kaelan's hand, slightly behind his back, twisting his own wand between his fingers and Hiro's hand deep inside the pocket of his robes.

"Are you going to hex me, Potter?" Kaelan hissed, "If not, then I know better things that we can be doing."

Lily shivered in disgust as he glanced her over approvingly.

_Please, Merlin, someone show up now!_ Lily thought desperately.

Lily's hopes fell drastically as two easily identifiable cackles came closer.

"Well, lookie what we have here!" Delta Savage said cheerfully, "Seems like we're not the only ones late for Potions, Lyra."

Lyra Malfoy, her arm linked with Delta's, rocked back and forth on her heels, "Oh, and what a sight to come across! My morning has just been made. Be careful Kael, you don't want to get her Muggle-loving filth on you."

Kaelan leered at Lily while Delta could not see his face before he glanced over his shoulder at the two girls with a delighted smirk.

Delta Savage was even worse than Kaelan. Compared to her, he was only her dog, stuck on a very short leash. Slim and statuesque, it was clear that Delta saw herself above all others because of her pure-blood status, though no one knew of her parents or ancestors. Her long blond hair almost completely covered one of her black eyes that glittered malevolently. Lily knew that Delta's favourite past time was torturing the Muggle-born students at the school, though she was never punished for she was so cunning that she never left any evidence behind.

Lyra Malfoy had always been attached to Delta's hip and the girls could easily be mistaken for sisters. Lyra's pale blonde hair was in elegant waves, her blue eyes dark and her pale skin almost white. Lily was always astonished that this girl was Scorpius's little sister. They were so different. Scorpius, Albus's best friend and Rose's boyfriend, was like a brother to Lily. He was so kind and quiet, but so open and with a heart so big that it rivaled Grandma Weasley's. Lyra was quite easily one of Lily's archenemies.

"Oh, Potter. You're just like your dear, precious father," Delta hissed, "You're weak. You can't even use a simple hex! It's why the innocent die young, because they can't protect themselves - because they're afraid to. That's why you're going to be one of the first to go when _it_ happens. You and your filthy father and your blood traitor family! You're all going to go the way of your dead grandparents!"

Kaelan hissed at the sharp pain as Lily jabbed her wand into his chest further, effectively making him take a few steps back from her so she could pointed her wand over his shoulder and at Delta. No one insulted her father and her family and especially not her deceased grandparents. Delta Savage was always able to make Lily's blood boil and her vision turn red in anger. She was the only one Lily ever considered using an Unforgivable Curse on, and the only one that could make Lily abandon her beliefs of not attacking in cold blood. And right now, with Delta staring at her darkly, expectantly, Lily wanted nothing more than to curse her into next week.

"_Sectumsempra_!" Lily shouted.

But Delta was also the more skilled dueler. "_Protego!_" and before Lily could shoot out another spell, Kaelan joined in, making a slashing movement towards Lily with his wand.

Lily felt a force catch her in the stomach and knock her backwards, her wand falling from her fingers and her head cracking sharply with the hard ground as she fell. Dazedly, she could hear the mocking laughter of the four Slytherins and attempted to climb to her feet but the room spun and she fell again, which only made them laugh harder.

"That's enough, Delta."

The voice drifted into Lily's head, but she was still too out of it to make sense of who it was that was helping her. She heard the sound of one of the Slytherins spitting, one last laugh and then the sound of them walking away. She heard the person's quiet footsteps as they moved around her and the scrapping as they picked up her wand and pressed it into her hand.

"Are you okay?"

Lily realized who it was now kneeling near her: Darren Clowes, the quiet and secluded sixth year Slytherin. Darren's curly, black hair hung around his face as he gazed down at her, his ochre eyes troubled. Across from him was another person, looking anxious and nervous. It was Willow Clowes, Darren's fraternal twin sister who was often seen drifting at the edge of the group of Slytherins. Her hair was just as black as Darren's, but in a straight, blunt cut bob and her eyes just as ochre, but they also seemed dull.

When Lily didn't answer him, Darren glanced up at his sister, "You better catch up to them, Willow. You don't want them to think that you hung back to help her," he advised. His words were cold, but they were somehow warm. As if he didn't want his sister to know that he actually cared about her.

Willow nodded but quickly touched Lily's arm with her cold hand. For a second Lily was sure that she was going to say something, but she abruptly jumped to her feet and ran.

"Are you okay?" he asked again.

"I'm fine," Lily said stubbornly, attempting to rise slowly to her feet. Her head throbbed but she didn't fall over again, which was an improvement. Darren stood close by, his hands held out as if to help her but he refrained from touching, something that Lily appreciated. She didn't want to seem like she was weak, but by how his voice had sounded when he stopped Delta, he had definitely seen her be beaten by the Slytherins and that did not help her not feel weak.

"I think I should take you down to the hospital wing," he said, "It looks like you're getting quite the bump on your head. You're just lucky you didn't start to bleed."

"I'm fine!" Lily snapped again, grabbing her bag from the floor and stuffing her wand inside, "I'm late for Potions, I have to get going. But - um…thanks," Lily said ungracefully. She lifted her hand to run it through her hair out of habit, but winced when she accidentally touched the growing bump.

Darren continued to stare at her, "It's no problem. Don't take offence to this, but you shouldn't let them get to you like that. It's what they want."

"I know," Lily admitted, "But it's hard when…"

"When they mention your family, I understand." Darren nodded, "But you said you needed to get to Potions, so I guess I'll see you around."

"Yeah."

Lily watched as Darren gave her a small, fleeting smile, turned on his heel and walked away. She turned herself and descended down into the dungeons, entering the Potions classroom almost a half-hour late. She gave Rosalie and Katrina a look that told them she would explain later while trying to heed Darren's advice and ignore the four smirking Slytherins that were across the classroom from her. Louis was the only one without a partner and Lily went to him, giving him a reassuring smile as she began to cut up the roots that the board at the front of the classroom said they were going to have to use in their potion.

Professor Rabidus, a senile old man with dark skin, shocking, neat white hair, pale eyes, glasses and a white eye patch over his right eye only welcomed Lily brightly. He didn't seem to notice how late she was, or he just didn't care. Lily guessed it to be the latter because Professor Rabidus was just a funny old man - it was truly odd that he was Head of Slytherin House. With a swish of his white robes, he turned and gazed interestedly down into Jacob and Hunter's cauldron, asking what potion they were brewing, as if he didn't know, which, Lily thoughtdryly, he probably didn't.

**XxXxX**

**Baddies! Oh, I just love baddies! They're so...bad!**

**Anyways, review please! Let me know what you think about my baddies!  
**


	7. Madam Edona

**Disclaimer: I do not own the awesomeness that is Harry Potter**

**Since school starts tomorrow, I thought I would get at least one more chapter out before my doom begins. I wish I went to Hogwarts, at least then I'd be excited. Stupid school.**

**XxXxX**

"I'm fine!" Lily exclaimed for the thousandth time. It had been a day since Lily's fight with the Slytherins and she had been able to hide the bump, which had swelled so big that it almost poked out from her hair, until after dinner the next day, but they all found out when everyone had returned to the common room. Louis had patted Lily's head patronizingly when they were discussing a Muggle Studies question she had gotten wrong. Her flinch had instantly caught Hugo's attention and he dropped his book to walk over to Lily and examine her head. The others had been none too pleased when they had found out what happened.

Rosalie, Louis and Phoenix all looked as if they were plotting the deaths of the Slytherins while Alice frantically comforted Lily - even though she was not worrying - and Katrina and Hugo dug out their notes to see if there was a spell that could bring down the size and amount of pain of Lily's bump.

"Fine?" Rosalie snapped, outraged. "Lily, that thing is huge! Oh! Those damn Slytherins - I wish I could kill every single one of them!"

"Wait, who was it that stopped them again?" Phoenix asked, standing up.

"Darren Clowes," Lily said. "But why do you -"

Phoenix was already striding out of the common room, dragging a willing Louis along with her even though he didn't seem to know what she was doing either.

Hugo sighed and placed his notes down on the table. "I think we're going to have to take you to the hospital wing to get this fixed. Apparently we haven't learned a de-swelling spell yet."

"No!" Lily stood, pulling herself away from Hugo. "I don't need the hospital wing, it'll go down in a few days, just leave it alone."

"Stop being so proud," Hugo said. "and just let me take you there."

"I'm not being proud! I'm being reasonable. There's no need for this. I don't need the hospital wing. I'm finishing my homework upstairs."

"Who doesn't need the hospital wing?"

Lily groaned as Jacob, Hunter and Aiden entered the common room, Alex Gilbert following behind them like he had been for the past few days. She sent a sharp look to Hugo and he rolled his eyes but nodded. Katrina, however, completely ignored Lily's warning as she looked up at the four Gryffindors.

"Lily. She got into a fight with some Slytherins and hurt her head." Katrina only shrugged when Lily looked at her. "It's best that they know. More people will be able to watch you now in case the Slytherins try it again. I'm only thinking strategy. You're Quidditch captain, you should understand _that_."

"What I don't understand is why you had to tell _him_," Lily said, nodding her head at Jacob. "This isn't going to end well now. For me or the Slytherins."

"Who?" Was the only word that Jacob suddenly seemed capable of forming. Lily gathered up her stuff quickly as she took in his stance: his fists and jaw clenched, his shoulders stiff, blue eyes narrowed. As she darted towards the girls dormitory stairs, Jacob seemed to know that she was going to for when she was on the fifth step he placed his foot on the first one and the stairway immediately flatten itself into a smooth slide that Lily slide down - right into Jacob's chest. He grabbed her arm before she could try to escape again. "Who was it, Lily?"

"None of your business, Winchester!"

Jacob looked irritated now as he glanced over his shoulder at Hugo. "You said she needs to go to the hospital wing?"

When Hugo nodded, Lily felt her bag drop out of her hands in shock as she was lifted directly off her feet and thrown over Jacob's shoulder.

"What the bloody hell are you doing?" Lily shrieked, throwing her hands back over her bottom and almost losing her balance on his shoulder. "Are you trying to flash the whole common room my underwear? Put me down you Neanderthal!" One of her hands came back around to pound Jacob on the back, but it seemed to only hurt her fist as it hit his strong back.

"Calm down," Jacob said, his voice oddly quiet and stiff. "Hunter, get the door for me."

"I'm coming with," Rosalie said, catching up to Jacob quickly as he exited the portrait hole and began walking through the halls of Hogwarts, Lily still yelling and kicking on his shoulder. "I'm sure she can walk, you know."

"Then she'll try to run up to the common room again rather than admit that she's hurt," Jacob told her, adjusting Lily heavily on her shoulder which made her stomach hit the rounded part of his shoulder and her breath was knocked out of her for a moment. "Sorry, Potter.

"No you're not," Lily gasped, cuffing him around the head. "And put me down!"

In the hospital wing, Madam Edona examined Lily's head with pursed lips. "Really! You've gone a whole day with this thing throbbing and growing when you could have just come to me and I would have had it fixed in a matter of seconds? Oh, you Gryffindors get on my nerves sometimes - you're all too proud to admit that you're hurt. Especially you, Mr Winchester! Don't give me that look, every time it's the same thing from you! Next time, I want you to just lay down and shush while I heal you - got it?"

Rosalie laughed as Madam Edona ranted at the two, enjoying herself as she sat on the bed beside Lily's. Lily, the pain in her head receding quickly after she had taken the potion Madam Edona gave her, instead was staring at Jacob. It was hard to read the look he had on his face as he stared at Madam Edona, listening to her rant while also seeming like he wanted her to shut up right now. His blue eyes were dark and cold.

When Madam Edona said that Lily only need to remain in the wing for a few more minutes, Jacob stood and nodded to the elderly woman. "I'm going to head back up to the common room -"

"We don't need a play-by-play, Winchester," Lily commented sourly, still miffed about being carried all through Hogwarts.

"- I trust you can walk up to the tower now, Potter." And suddenly, Jacob was acting like himself as he said "See you in the morning." and gave Lily a none too subtle wink before he left, whistling to himself. Madam Edona watched him leave, an odd fondness on her face, then turned to Lily and gently touched the spot where her bump had been and proclaimed her healed.

"Wait, Madam Edona," Lily said suddenly, making Rosalie stop from where she had been getting off of her own bed. "When you were yelling at Jacob - you said that every time he's in here he says he's not hurt. But last time I remember him being in the hospital wing was in fourth year after he was hit by the Bludger during the Quidditch game. He's been in here more since then?"

Rosalie's shocked expression matched Lily's as the Matron paled dramatically and nodded her head frantically. "Of course he has, dear, everyone stops in every now and then when they feel a cold or some other illness coming on. Nothing _major_, no, nothing like that. Off you go then, you're curfew is coming up and you two do not want detention, now do you?" And she ushered them quickly out of the hospital wing.

"Was that as weird to you as it was to me?" Lily asked Rosalie as the doors shut behind them.

Rosalie pursed her lips, then shrugged. "I don't know, it's Madam Edona - she's just weird overall. Why are you asking about Jacob so much anyways? I thought you hated him? You haven't been helping your case lately."

Lily glared at Rosalie. "It's been two days! So, what? I'm curious is all - I have a right to be. He goes digging into my personal life all the time, now it's my turn."

"You keep telling yourself that, honey," Rosalie said patronizingly, darting out of Lily's reach when she tried to hit her. The half-Veela's laugh was heard all through the halls as she continued to run while Lily lagged behind.

It wasn't her fault she was suddenly so curious. She was naturally a curious, suspicious person - she got it from her father. That, plus the fact that all the professors seemed to know something about him that they were keeping secret was driving Lily insane. She hated being left out of things, but of course, when it came to something big, it just had to be him that it was all about. And his behaviour over the past few years! Lily was getting a headache just thinking about it. He had gone from her best friend, to following her like a puppy wanting to be loved, than acting like an arrogant prat, then to not talking to her at all, and now back to the prat while jumping from it to the cold, closed off person that Lily knew nothing about and back again. It was enough to drive anyone crazy.

And then his eyes. Lily had at first loved his eyes when she met him. They were so blue, but then she had grown to hate them. They always had this amused, cocky, triumphant, _happy_ look in them that made Lily want to curse him until the blue disappeared. But lately, while he had started acting like his normal self again, his eyes remained the same way they had for the past year: distant and cold. The look in them was so empty that they were one of the main things that had been tipping her off about him.

Even if she did hate Jacob Winchester with every fibre of her being, she would most definitely never wish the pain he was obviously feeling on anyone.

"Lily!"

Lily turned at the yell, waiting as Louis and Phoenix waved and moved quickly towards her in a way that Lily knew she was in trouble with them.

"Slytherins are out still," Louis said fiercely. "You shouldn't be alone."

Lily huffed. "Well, I did have Winchester and Rosalie with me, but then they both ditch me so now I guess I'm stuck with you two."

"Whatever," Phoenix quickly brushed away the remark and they began walking up to the Gryffindor tower together. "So, we went down to the Slytherin common room, right? Yeah, that's where we went - anyways, after much yelling and threatening through that wall they call an entrance, we finally got Clowes to come outside to talk to us. We asked him why the bloody hell he protected you - a Slytherin helping a Gryffindor? Unheard of - and he said he just did it because he felt the _need _to. It wasn't _fair_ that it was four against one so -"

"Basically!" Louis cut in loudly. "What she means is that we've got nothing."

"Didn't think you'd get anything," Lily agree. "It's Darren Clowes. The only thing anyone knows about him is that Willow is his twin. He's weird. He doesn't act like a Slytherin, but he doesn't act like a Gryffindor, Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw as well. He's -"

"A mystery," Phoenix finished for Lily. "And I'm intrigued."

"Oh, Feens no, you're going to hurt him if you go after him," Lily said jokingly, nudging her friend. "We can't let you ruin the only nice Slytherin."

"I won't hurt him!" Phoenix snapped indignantly.

"Face it, Lils, once Phoenix has chosen the person they are officially screwed. Remember that girl from last year? She's not here this year. Transferred to Beauxbatons because she couldn't stand to see Phoenix." Louis glanced at the black-haired girl in what seemed to be admiration. "Only the true players can do that much damage. Ah, I remember how shocked the school had been…"

"I think they were more shocked that Phoenix was bisexual, Lou."

Phoenix grinned at the two of them. "And damn proud of it!"

**XxXxX**

**Oh, Phoenix, if you only knew what I have in store for you...**

**Anyways! Review please!**


	8. Quidditch Tryouts

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, but I do own the seven books that have earned a top notch spot on my bookshelf!**

**Dun dun dunnnnn! Quidditch tryouts! **

**XxXxX**

Before Lily knew it, it was Saturday, the fourteenth of September - the day she had scheduled for Gryffindor Quidditch tryouts. Heading down to the Great Hall earlier than usual with a tired Phoenix and excited Rosalie on either side of her and her Black Lightning broomstick in hand, Lily was surprised with the number of Gryffindors that were at the table, wide awake and fully dressed, looking as anxious and as ready to go as the next person.

The only ones that didn't seem nervous were the two sixth year boys that sat in the center of the table, a blond head between them. Jacob and Hunter were apparently explaining the rules of the game to Alex, whose face, while curious, seemed utterly confused about how everything worked without any examples.

"Ah! And here's our dear captain now, everyone!" Hunter called out.

Lily fought down her flush as every eye in the Great Hall turned to look at her: Slytherins menacing, Ravenclaws gauging, Hufflepuffs encouraging and Gryffindors proud. Rosalie glared at the Slytherins as she grabbed Lily's arm and began steering her towards the only empty spots at the Gryffindor table which were right across from the boys. Lily laid her broomstick carefully against the wall behind her and began piling food onto her plate.

"We woke Alex here up early so he could watch the tryouts and get a hang of them for next year to tryout for the team," Jacob explained, ruffling Alex's blond hair.

Lily didn't understand why Alex seemed to prefer to hang out with the sixth year Gryffindor boys rather than the boys in his own year, but by the looks at the younger year girls around the Hall were sending him, Lily had a faint idea of why. That, and the boy probably idolized the five by now. Lily had to admit that with the five Gryffindors coaching the boy, he was destined to be great in Quidditch, academics, relationships and leadership.

"I still don't get Quidditch," Alex said quietly.

"No, Al! Don't act shy now. Now is when you want to seem your toughest - in front of girls," Hunter advised him.

Jacob laughed loudly, his eyes scrunching shut and Lily noticed the dark purple bags that were extremely prominent against his abnormally pasty skin.

"I'll be glad to teach you," Lily said to the boy, whose dark brown eyes widened rather comically when she spoke directly to him. "You can sit on my broom with me, get a sense of the feeling of flying to be prepared for next year if you tryout. I'm guessing you haven't had your first flying lesson yet?"

Alex shook his head, still looking starstruck.

"Good, so you'll join me then. Come on, we have to get all these sorry excuses that want to call themselves part of my team up and onto the pitch…but first…" Lily stood, pushing her finished breakfast away from her and waving her hand above her head to catch everyone's attention. "For all of you who are wearing jeans and tee shirts - go change!" Lily barked. "Dress warm and comfortable for you will be moving a lot in these tryouts, not just sitting on your broom and flying around. I won't tolerate lazy arses on my team!"

Some of the people hoping to tryout looked a little put off at the idea of not being on their brooms, but most stood and exited the Great Hall - not heading outside but turning right, towards the staircase up to the Gryffindor tower. The remaining Gryffindors that were left stood as well and instead headed out towards the pitch. Lily stood and heard the others do the same as she grabbed her broomstick, leading the way out to the pitch and beckoning Alex to her side.

Alex pulled his Gryffindor scarf more securely around his neck when they finally stepped onto the pitch, the chilly September air swirling around them. Lily herself was warm in her Weasley sweater from last Christmas, white with a large, red 'L' on it. It wasn't long before the rest of the changed people joined them, all dressed in various forms of sweatpants, jumpers and even shorts. Lily asked Alex to hold her broomstick as she stepped forwards to address all the hopeful players.

"Okay, welcome to tryouts!" She called out over the crowd who all cheered hopefully. The stands were beginning to fill up with observers and Lily was able to catch sight of the Slytherins and Darren at opposite ends of the pitch, Hagrid - huge and grey - with Professors Scarta and Rosewood and Rosalie and Phoenix taking their own seats near the middle of the pitch. "Now, I may seem like a mean captain, but I will not allow weaklings on my team. My team has to be in shape and able to take a beating - things that will happen during a Quidditch match."

Lily began to stride through the crowd so she stood in the centre of the pitch, Alex following her every move. "First things first, to sort out the weakest amongst you - I want two laps of the pitch. Go!"

Many faces stared at her, astonished, while most instantly jumped into gear and began to run. It was like one great race watching everyone run the pitch. The ones that couldn't finish their laps Lily sent away instantly, which was almost a quarter of the crowd. The remaining runners were trying to beat each other and reach Lily first and, unsurprisingly, Jacob stopped beside her a few minutes later, breathing heavily and looking tired but pleased with himself.

"Winchester," Lily greeted. "First one done, though you look like you haven't slept. Do you think you'll be able to handle this?"

"Worried, Potter?" He smirked down at her. "No need to be. I'm not tired at all - I'm actually the opposite: wide awake and tough. Right now, I feel like the Prince Charming in this story - strong and capable of anything."

Lily nodded to others as they finished their laps and let them collapse on the ground to catch their breath. Hunter came jogging up beside Jacob, resting his arm on Jacob's left shoulder and breathing heavily. Lily said to Jacob, "Really, Winchester? Prince Charming? Because I see you more as the frog."

Jacob grinned cheekily. "Alright, then where's my kiss?"

"Sorry, I'm the bitch in the story that no one likes and would never kiss a frog."

"Is that so? Well it just so happens that the 'bitch no one likes' is normally my favourite character."

Hunter began laughing, the sound coming out in gasps while Alex himself chuckled a little. Lily glared at the surrounding hopefuls as they too began to snigger. It instantly made them stop or try to cover their laughing up with fake coughing fits.

Some of the group were still running and Lily waited as one of the large, plump kids tripped, got back to his feet and continued running.

"Jake! Do you want your jumper back now?"

Lily smiled at the light voice that came towards them. Sophie Winchester was running towards Jacob, the blue jumper in her hands and a bright look on her face. Sophie was Jacob's third year Gryffindor cousin. Unlike her cousin, Sophie was short and her curly hair was long and black while her eyes, wide and innocent, were a soft, golden brown. She looked worriedly up at Jacob, taking in his tired form, and pushed the jumper into his hands. "Good luck, Jake! I know you'll make it on the team."

Sophie ran back to her seat in the stands beside Farrow, a third year Ravenclaw girl that was also the half-sister of Will. The two looked extremely different though, for Farrow - Lily didn't know her first name - had pale skin, slanted brown eyes and was thin and small next to her half-brother's copper skin, turquoise eyes and large frame. The only thing they shared was their black hair.

"How come I'm able to stand your cousin and your older brother, but not you, Winchester?" Lily asked, looking away from where Sophie waved from her seat at them, and up at Jacob who shrugged.

"Maybe you just don't want everyone to know that you're caught in the charm of the Winchesters, so you decide to not like me, when we all know that you actually do."

"In your dreams, Winchester," Lily snapped and picked his broom up off the ground, shoving it into his chest. "In the air, now! All of you! I want a lap of the pitch to see which of you can fly and which of you can't."

Jacob and Hunter both gave her salutes as they climbed onto their brooms and took off into the air, followed by everyone else. Lily saw Will's dark hair against the bright blue sky as he flew around the pitch with the rest of the crowd. He flew well, much better than Lily expected, and he looked as if he was trying to pass by Jacob on his broom. Lily then called Alex over and gestured to the box that was on the ground in the centre of the pitch, latched tightly shut. She opened the box and showed him the two Bludgers and the Quaffle, explaining to him what each was for. The Golden Snitch, she told him, was her job to catch, for it would win her team one hundred and fifty points and end the match.

"Alright, Alex," Lily hovered off the ground a little on her broom, "climb on and hold on tightly to me."

Alex look half-scared and half-excited as he struggled to climb onto the broom behind Lily, his arms clamping desperately around her waist as their feet completely left the ground. She could feel his quick breaths on her back as they flew higher and she guessed he had just opened his eyes, for she felt him give a sudden tremble and yelp. She flew slowly to get him accustomed to the feeling of flying and in a matter of minutes his hands began to loosen slightly on her waist and she turned back to the people trying out, who had continued to circle the pitch around them.

"So, those of you who have remained in the air have made it to the next round. Those trying out for the position of Beaters, over there. Chasers - there and Keepers - you're over there," she pointed to three different sections of the pitch and watched as the group broke away from one another to fly into their respected areas. "Beaters are up first, everyone else may land to watch the trials."

Lily landed as well, helping Alex off of her broom. He seemed dazed but a slight grin was on his face. "Alex, when I tell you to, I want you to take the bindings off of the Bludgers for me, okay?"

"Got it!" He said enthusiastically, stumbling over to the box that was shaking from the struggling Bludgers. Lily shook her head, amused, as she stared after the boy. She could see why the boys in her year had been letting him be around them so much. He was so eager to follow orders and learn all these new things. Lily thought he was much like a blank canvas just waiting to be painted on, and that's what they were doing - what she was helping them do. "Alright, Beaters, break into pairs. You two, come and get the bats. When the Bludgers are released you each get two hits to the Bludgers, which you will attempt to keep away from your fellow group of Beaters and also try to aim for the area where I shoot sparks into the air, okay? You will be judged on the force of your hit, your aim and your - hopefully - fast reflexes."

When the first Beaters had the bats, Lily pulled her wand from where she had tucked it into the waistband of her sweatpants. She leaned on her broomstick as she called out to Alex, who jumped away in shock as soon as he had unlatched the bindings keeping the Bludgers down. The black iron balls shot into the air, one heading straight for the gathering of Beaters and the other zooming at one of the Beaters that held a bat.

When the first Beater made his hit, the Bludger went flying directly in the direction that Lily had shot the red sparks up and the crowd of Gryffindors on the pitch and in the stands all cheered appreciatively. The Beaters had only a second to toss their bat to another person and dive out of the way on the brooms. One boy was sent off to the hospital wing being supported by two other people Lily had said wouldn't make the team after one of the Bludgers had struck him in the ribs and evidently cracked a few of them.

When the Beater tryouts were finished, Lily had chosen the Eckart brothers, Derek and Leo, to be the Beaters. Both were hugely built, Derek in seventh year with short, wiry brown hair and Leo in fifth year with the same wiry hair but blond and both had the same grey eyes.

Lily dreaded the next part, for she knew that she would have to pick her Chasers before the Keeper and Jacob Winchester, Will Schell and Lily's cousin Roxanne were all in the running to being a Chaser. Maybe this would be the year that Jacob lost the spot to another player - maybe he would lose it to Will, and Lily just hoped that her cousin would make it. Roxanne, a fourth year, had been trying out every year that she had been eligible, and had still not made it on the team.

Lily took the Quaffle from Alex, who was more okay with handling the dimpled red ball than the Bludgers that the Eckart brothers had stowed back into the box and strapped down just to prove they could.

"Alright, Chasers," she called their attention. "For the first round, you will each have a chance to take five shots at the Goal posts. You have only three seconds to hold onto the Quaffle before each throw and those who get four shots in or more will advance to the next round."

Lily was annoyed at watching some of the shots, wondering why those people had even bothered to tryout if they couldn't even get one of the shots in. By the end of the first round, the number of Chasers left was brought down to twelve, Jacob, Will and Roxanne among the number. Lily then put the twelve Chasers all against each other and the first six to score made it to the final round. The second round was where Roxanne was knocked out of the running.

"I'm sorry, Roxy," Lily said quickly when the mocha-skinned girl landed.

Roxanne ran an agitated hand through her shoulder length black hair and huffed. "Not your fault, Lils. I'll get them next year, I swear. I'll make the team next year! I'm going to train everyday…"

As she walked away, Lily could definitely see how much Roxanne was like her mother, Lily's Aunt Angelina. Aiden greeted Roxanne kindly from where he was sitting near the entrance to the pitch and Roxanne smiled at him. Lily's eyes narrowed curiously before she turned her attention back to the tryouts.

Lily clenched her hand around her broom handle tightly as the final round was played and ended, with her Chasers coming out as Will - who she wholeheartedly congratulated with a hug and assurance that she knew he would make it -, Nikko Bain - a naïve and out-there fourth year boy that was tanned, tall and wiry -, and Jacob. Lily was unable to miss the glare he sent Will when she hugged him but only congratulated him fleetingly as she advanced on the Keepers.

"Alright Keepers, it's your turn," Lily said and she gestured to the three new Chasers. "The Chasers here are going to take ten shots on each of you. It's you're job to make sure as few of the shots go in. The Keeper that saves the most shots will be put on the team."

Lily already knew who was going to be Keeper, but she let all the others try first. Many failed miserably while only two or three were able to keep eight of the shots out of the Goal posts. When Hunter finally mounted his broom, it seemed that everyone knew that it was over. Hunter had been the Gryffindor Keeper since his third year and it was obvious why he had been when he had kept all ten shots out of the Goals posts.

Lily had to hold in her laughter as she heard Alex cheering loudly behind her.

The observers knew that the tryouts were over and began to exit the pitch; the only ones remaining were the friends of the players who waited by the entrance of the pitch. Lily glanced around at her new team and it suddenly dawned on her what she had done.

Before her stood six boys, who were going to be led this year by a girl half their size. On top of that, Jacob was already staring Will down who, not one to back out of a competition, stared right back. Hunter was amused by the situation between the black-haired boys. The Eckart brothers were whacking each other with their Beater bats and Nikko looked them all over cheerfully, seeming pleased with this years line-up.

There was no one on the team that Lily would be able to go to if things got out of hand, for it was obvious that Hunter would always side with Jacob, the Eckart brothers would just get involved so they could be included in the fight and it was clear that Nikko would be no help at all. He reminded Lily of a slightly less insane, male version of her family friend, Luna Scamander.

_Oh, Merlin,_ She thought, _I am so done for._

**XxXxX**

**Yeah, I wouldn't be pleased either if I had to deal with six boys that were all twice as big as me.**

**Though I would love to play Quidditch...**

**ANYWAYS! Review please!**


	9. Late At Night

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, I'm just kidnapping his daughter for awhile**

**Updated three times in a week? No ways! **

**Seriously though, I already have twenty-one chapters written and finally got to the one I had been waiting for. So, being so proud of myself, I'm putting up another chapter.**

**XxXxX**

"He's so - so - so…urgh!"

Lily and Rosalie exchanged glances as Phoenix whispered frantically to them as they took notes on Dementors in Defence Against the Dark Arts. Across the classroom, Darren Clowes sat with his sister and it was clear from the looks on their faces that they did not appreciate the arrangement. Phoenix occupied the seat next to Lily, while Rosalie sat with Aiden in front of them. Lily was not able to miss the way Jacob had instantly claimed the table next to Lily's and sat on the side closest to her with Hunter beside him.

For the past week, Phoenix had been cornering Darren Clowes at every chance, and each time she met up with her friends after to tell them that he had oh so politely excused himself and left, looking over his shoulder at her suspiciously, as if he expected her to jump him when he wasn't looking.

"This isn't funny, stop laughing!" Phoenix hissed to Louis who had snickered under his breath. "This is seriously cutting into my promiscuity time! Normally it takes me two - maybe three days tops but it's been almost two weeks now. What is it? Have I suddenly lost my touch? Am I not pretty?"

Lily patted Phoenix's hand comfortingly. "You were bound to lose your looks sooner or later, Feefee."

"What?"

Phoenix shouted so loud that everyone in the class turned to look at her and Rosalie and Louis laughed almost maniacally. Professor Rosewood stood up from her desk and the chalk that had been continuing to write the Dementors note on the board by itself suddenly stopped. Professor Rosewood walked between the rows of desks towards Lily's and Phoenix's table, the Slytherins looking delighted that the two girls might be getting in trouble. Lily's lip curled upwards as she sneered at Delta.

"Back to work everyone, they're not getting in trouble!" Professor Rosewood announced to the class. The Slytherins looked severely disappointed as they turned around. Phoenix had on the same expression as the Slytherins, Lily guessed that it was because while the entire class had turned to see what was going on, the only one who didn't had been Darren Clowes. "Phoenix, dear," Professor Rosewood began thoughtfully when she reached their table, her voice becoming quieter with her next words. "You might not want to stare at Mr Clowes so much - I think it's starting to scare him."

Lily began to laugh along with Rosalie and Louis, but as soon as she saw Jacob laughing as well, she stopped and leant across the aisle to slap his arm. "Shut up!"

"No hitting, Lily," Professor Rosewood reprimanded her but was still smiling. "And I haven't been able to tell you after tryouts on Saturday, but I very much approve of the team you chose. I just hope you'll be able to handle Mr Winchester and Mr Payne on your team without the help of last years captain."

"No need to worry, miss," Lily said. "They know that I'll make their lives hell if they cause any problems. Right?" She gazed sharply at the two boys who only grinned innocently back at her, which she was instantly suspicious of. "Besides, I have Will on the team, so he'll help me."

Jacob's face soured. "Yeah, because Schell is _so _perfect."

"You're just jealous that he's a better Chaser than you!" Lily snapped.

"Better? Like hell he is! If he was so good he would have tried out for the team earlier than his _last year_!"

"I knew I should have put Roxanne on the team instead of you."

"Okay now," Professor Rosewood said quickly, coming around the side of the desk to stand between Lily and Jacob's tables. "Bring it down. Keep copying the notes. I apologize for saying something that I thought was completely innocent."

Lily nodded stiffly, picking up her quill again to continue where she had left off in the notes.

_A Dementors worst weapon is its Kiss, in which the Dementor will latch their mouth onto that of its victim and proceed to suck out their soul. A Dementor__'__s Kiss is seen as something worse than death, for while the person has no soul after, they continue to exist, only a shell of their previous self. A Dementor may perform its Kiss on -_

"Phoenix, Darren just glanced over here."

Lily winced from the crack that came from Phoenix's neck after she lifted her head too quickly. Groaning and rubbing the back of her neck, Phoenix stared over at Darren who was still writing his notes and then back to Rosalie.

"Well, he did, but it was only for a second," Rosalie defended herself.

Hugo leaned closer to them from where he sat beside Louis. "Phoenix, you're kind of intense. I think he might have just been looking over here to make sure that you weren't staring at him. You can be rather scary."

"I've talked to the guy a few times," Aiden added. "He's not the type to just go for just any girl. He has _morals_."

"You've talked to him?" Phoenix looked excited at the news.

"Didn't you just hear him?" Louis interjected. "_Morals_, Phoenix. I know you might not understand the word. But morals is something that you don't have."

Rosalie glared furiously at Louis. "Leave her alone," she snapped. "And like you have any either. Face it, _Weasley_ - no offence Hugo, Lily - you're a manwhore. You have less morals than the rest of us - than the _Slytherins_. Have you gotten yourself checked recently? Wouldn't want you to have some disease."

Phoenix snorted in laughter. Hugo held onto Louis's shoulder, seemingly holding him down while Aiden stared at Rosalie in shock. It wasn't an odd occurrence when Rosalie said something nasty to someone to defend her friends, but when it was _to _one of her friends that she said it, it was shocking.

"I can't believe you," Louis hissed to her.

Rosalie looked a little guilty, but was able to cover it up with a smirk. "I believe in what I said. And I believe that Phoenix will have Darren Clowes before you've have your fifteenth girl by January."

Louis had his own smirk on. "Are you making a bet, _Valentine_?"

"You bet I am."

"You're on."

"Oh, no!" Alice moaned from her seat in front of Louis. "Louis, don't! You'll hurt a lot of girls for a bet! That's just mean!"

Louis smiled charmingly at her. "Don't worry your pretty little blonde head about it, Alice. I'll make sure not to hurt the girls' feelings, I assure you."

Alice looked doubtful but nodded.

**XxXxX**

Lily's appetite was ruined when Jacob brought his guitar down to dinner. He sat a few seats down from her, in his seat with his back facing the table and the black, sleek guitar in his lap and a gaggle of girls surrounding him, begging for him to play them songs and serenade them. Luckily, he refused to sing for them, saying that his voice was getting rough lately. Lily was pleased with the fact, knowing that she probably wouldn't have been able to keep her dinner down if he sang. It wasn't that he was a bad singer, no, he was actually really good, but Lily utterly despised him and she felt sick every time he showed off to people. Also, the last time he sang while playing his guitar was near the end of fourth year, just after exams had ended and he had come out of the school, playing his guitar and heading towards where she had been sitting at the lake's edge with the girls. He had proceeded to serenade her with the sappiest song she ever heard that he later told her he had written especially for her.

Lily would have rather enjoyed Jacob playing his guitar at dinner - it kept people quiet while they listened and watched and the soft tunes sounded lovely - if it wasn't for the giggles that would erupt from the girls at every pause in the music.

"Looks like she's going to wet herself from excitement," Rosalie suddenly said, pushing her now empty plate away from herself and nodded her head over to the Hufflepuff table.

Lily turned. Elodie Sinclair, a third year, was literally shaking in her seat, craning her head over all others so she could see Jacob. She was a long limbed, stick thin girl with choppy brown hair and enormous blue eyes. She was an excitable, obsessive girl, and not the least bit subtle. Out of all the girls at Hogwarts, she was by far Jacob's biggest admirer and had been since he had bumped into her on her first train ride to Hogwarts while he had cornered Lily against a wall.

Since the moment they met, Elodie had declared herself Lily's mortal enemy.

Lily just found the girl amusing.

As soon as Jacob announced to the girls that he was tired and going to bed, Elodie jumped up from her seat and ran across the Hall straight towards him. He was surprised when Elodie came to an abrupt stop in front of him, beaming widely.

"Hi, Jacob!"

"Uh…hello, Elodie."

Elodie gave a dramatic sigh. "Jake, I told you that you could call me Elly like my friends do. Elodie is _way _too formal. Anyways, so I'm a third year now and third years get to go to Hogsmeade -"

"Watch this," Hunter whispered loudly to Alex who looked bewildered. "Jacob is about to teach you how to brush off an unwanted date."

"How do you know she's about to ask him out?" Alex asked.

"It's _Elodie_," Hunter said, as if it was obvious.

And it was obvious, but only to those that had been subjected to three years of Elodie's crazy Jacob obsession. Lily only watched because she loved to watch Jacob squirm uncomfortably and know how it felt to have someone bug you _all the time_.

"- and so since a Hogsmeade weekend will be coming up in about a month, I just thought that I'd get to you before anyone else had time to. I mean, I know you'll have a lot of girls that will want to go with you, but I guess that if I ask now that I can just be assured that no other girl has gotten to you yet. And hopefully you haven't asked anyone yet either -" she sent Lily a sharp look, "- but you're not really the type of person to ask someone out long before the actual date, right? So anyways, do you want to go with me?"

Even Alice was surprised with how much Elodie said in a little amount of time and only one breath. Jacob though, shifted from foot to foot and looked regretful.

"Actually, Elodie, the first Hogsmeade weekend of every year I usually spend with my friends. You know, head to Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes to stock up, catch a Butterbeer at The Three Broomsticks - the usual stuff."

"Always mention friends to get out of something," Hunter said to Alex.

"Really? Are you sure that you can't miss this once?" Elodie begged.

"Sorry, but it's tradition," Jacob shrugged. "You don't mess with that shit."

Elodie looked depressed, but continued to stare at Jacob, worry now filling her huge blue eyes. "Are you okay? You look a tired. And really pale."

Lily noticed it after Elodie had pointed it out.

The bags under Jacob's eyes were much darker now then they were three days ago. His skin, normally a nice bronze, was pale, which made the bags one of the main attractions on his face, for his blue eyes were darker than usual. Even the way he held himself showed that he was tired - a big difference compared to how he normally walked with his head held high.

"I'm fine, but like I said, I'm tired so I'm going to -"

But Elodie's face expression turned outraged as she thought of something that seemed to be bugging her. It was another thing about Elodie; she could go from her puppy love expression to Crazy Elodie in a matter of miliseconds. "You're lying! You went out with that Patricia Elgin girl to Hogsmeade two years ago!"

"Mayday! Mayday!"

Elodie continued to ignore Hunter's commentary.

Her large eyes began to well with tears. "Why won't you go out with me? Why - STOP LAUGHING, LILY POTTER!" Elodie screamed. She glared at Lily through her tears as she gave a heartbroken sob and fled from the Great Hall. A few sniggers followed after her while the gaggle of girls that had been around Jacob all let out cruel, mocking cackles.

"You could have at least given her a decent reason," Lily said to Jacob who was still standing where Elodie had left him.

He had the decency to look remorseful. "She won't take a hint. It's her own fault. Whatever, it's done with, I'm going to bed."

"And this is why I don't like you," Lily said lowly to herself, but she guessed that she said it a little too loud for both Alice and Jacob reacted.

"Lily!" Alice exclaimed. "That was mean to say. We know that you don't, but it's another thing to actually say it to someone! Oh, Jacob, she doesn't mean it, don't worry. You should really just go to bed - you look like you could pass out any minute now. Lily, you were really mean to Elodie too, you know. You shouldn't have been laughing at her. She's a little odd, but it was really not required and -" Alice fretted but Jacob interrupted.

"Don't act all high and mighty, Potter," Jacob snapped. "If you remember, you do the exact same thing with Evan Levine. I don't need your superior attitude right now." Jacob suddenly looked over at the Ravenclaw table and motioned with his hand for someone to come over. "Hey, Levine! Lily wants to talk to you. Have fun," he added to Lily as he turned and left the Great Hall, his guitar on his back.

Lily winced as Evan Levine, a second year, slid happily into the empty seat next to her. Lily glared at her friends as they all stood and left the Great Hall as well, waving amusedly to her as she was left with Evan.

An angry flush crept up her neck.

"Y-y-you look a little r-red, Lily, ar-are you okay? Do you need some i-i-ice?"

Evan Levine was Lily's own, stuttering, blushing version of Elodie Sinclair. The only difference between the two was that, while Elodie was completely in love with Jacob, Evan was completely in love with the idea of Lily's father. He was one of the many people that thought that if they were on Lily's good side, then they would be on the good side of Harry Potter. It was hard to get through a day without Evan complimenting her in some way, hoping that news of it would make its way back to her father.

**XxXxX**

Lily had managed to escape from Evan in less than five minutes. Both he and Elodie were so eager but, unlike Elodie, Evan was so eager to please that she never required a reason to leave him.

In the common room she found Rosalie and Louis going over their bet, planning what would happen when one lost and one won. Alice sat disapprovingly beside them. She seemed to be the moderator of their discussion, for the two bright blondes turned to her whenever they came up with an idea and she would either shake her head or nod.

Lily ran up to her dorm and grabbed her bag then returned to the common room where she sat down on the ground beside Aiden at the low table near the fire. He had his Ancient Runes homework spread around the table and Lily took out her own papers, making room for herself on the table and pulling Aiden's textbook towards her. She and Aiden had been the only Gryffindors in their year to take Ancient Runes.

Blanca slinked out from where she had been sleeping underneath one of the couches to rest against Lily's thigh, her purring loud. Lily absently stroked Blanca as she glanced over at Aiden's work. "We're not going to be able to get these translations done tonight. I don't understand half of these symbols."

Aiden nodded but continued working. "Well, then you better get started. I'm at least a bit further than you."

"Not by much," Lily said. "Why can't I just be naturally smart like Katrina and Hugo? I hate working so hard to get good marks. Do you think I could convince either of them to do my work for me? They're not taking Runes, but I'm pretty sure they'd pick up on it faster than I have in three years."

Aiden flipped a page in his textbook. "Do you remember what happened last time you asked Hugo to do your homework for you? Or Katrina at that?"

"They seem so nice until you really need them - then they bite of your heads. It's always the quiet ones you've got to watch out for."

"Their kids are going to be genius's."

"If Hugo ever gets the nerve to ask Katrina out," Lily added, nudging Aiden with her arm. Aiden grinned back at her before pointing to a rune on the page they were supposed to translate. His face was confused and once Lily looked at it, she shook her head, lost as well. It took them an hour just to find out what that symbol meant and another three hours for them to finish the translation. By that time, it was almost midnight and the common room had emptied out. Aiden had fallen asleep on the couch, his Runes textbook open on his chest and parchment scattered on him, Lily on the floor. Lily had fallen asleep too, her head resting back against the couch in an awkward position.

She was only woken by someone cursing Blanca.

"Stupid cat! I swear, if Lily wouldn't have my head, I would pitch you out the window at the first chance. Don't hiss at me!" It was Jacob, arguing with Blanca who, by the sounds of it, was hissing and spitting as she normally did in his presence. "Alright, alright! I get it - you don't like me. Get out of my way you stupid cat! I don't have time for this!"

Lily cracked one eye open.

Jacob was glaring down at Blanca and every time he moved to step around the cat, she would hiss and block his path. Finally, Jacob bent down and picked Blanca up, holding her away from himself but her claws still caught his arms. He tossed her into an empty armchair and left the common room before she could charge at him again.

Lily, curious, pulled the Marauder's Map out of her bag, checking to make sure that Aiden was still asleep. With the help of Jacob she had nicked the Map from James in her first year who, in turn, had stolen the Invisibility Cloak from Albus. Lily then had stolen the Cloak from James. Her brothers had never been able to get the two family heirlooms back from her, for she had kept them up in her room in the girls' dorms or in her trunk with a Securing Charm on her trunk in the summer. Pulling out her wand and pointing it at the old piece of parchment, she muttered, "_I solemnly swear I am up to no good._"

Immediately, the walls of Hogwarts began to appear on the parchment, plus hundreds of little dots marked with names. Most names were in bed, but Lily saw, with suspicion, that Jacob's dot was walking freely through the halls of Hogwarts. For some reason, Peeves the poltergeist immediately zoomed away when his dot came near Jacob's. And now Jacob was descending the stairs, walking down the marble staircase in the Entrance Hall, meeting up with Professor Rosewood who waited at the bottom and -

"What time is it?"

Lily jumped and stuffed the Map into her bag quickly as Aiden groaned and sat up. The only people that knew about the Map were Rosalie, Phoenix, Jacob, Louis and Hugo - and Jacob didn't even know about the Cloak.

"It's late, we should get to bed," Lily said, gathering up her notes. She picked up Blanca, who was sitting indignantly in the armchair Jacob threw her in, as she headed towards the stairs to the girls dormitories. "Night Aiden."

"Night, Lily," Aiden yawned, heading up the boys staircase.

After he was gone, Lily shifted Blanca into her one arm as she pulled her Map out of her bag again. The Map was still covered in dots, though Jacob's was missing while Professor Rosewood was now heading back to her office. Sighing, Lily tapped the Map with her wand, said, "_Mischief managed_," and headed upstairs to sleep.

**XxXxX**

**Uh oh. Now, where could Jacob be sneaking off to in the middle of the night? **

**Naughty boy! He should know better.**


	10. Professor Lamia

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, but I do have Lily locked inside my mind, torturing her with evil plot bunnies.**

**Enjoy!**

**XxXxX**

Rosalie pulled Lily aside before they went into the Great Hall the next morning for breakfast. She had been unusually quiet since they had woken up and watching Lily the entire time. "Are you okay, Lily? Did you…did you have another one of those dreams last night?"

"How'd you know?" Lily asked.

"I woke up last night at about three in the morning and you were whimpering in your sleep. And you always do that -" Rosalie pointed to Lily's hand that had been rubbing a spot just below her shoulder, "- after one of them, like it hurts or something."

Lily stopped rubbing the area. "It's nothing, really. I woke up and it was just stinging a bit. Nothing major. Can't even remember what the dream was about so it doesn't matter. I never remember what they're about. Let's just go get some food, it's nothing to worry about."

Rosalie nodded warily and led the way into the Great Hall.

To be honest, Lily was just as curious as Rosalie was about her dreams. They had been happening for over a year now. During the school year, they seemed to get worse and worse while in the summer they were almost nonexistent. The only feelings she remembered from her summer dreams was the dull, emptiness in her chest and also the joyous feeling of doing something she loved - she didn't know what it was though. The dreams were so inconsistent, that Lily guessed she only had about nine or ten a year, but she could never figure out when they were going to happen. The worst dream she had was the very first one, in July, the summer before fifth year. She had woken up screaming, her shoulder searing in pain while the rest of her body felt as if it was on fire. Her family had been so scared by the intensity of her screaming that they hadn't left her alone all night and continuously changed the ice packs that they had placed under her blankets.

When Lily sat down at the Gryffindor table, she caught Phoenix's attention and gestured to the variety of fruit that was dancing all over the Hall, singing crude songs loudly with different lyrics. One particular banana seemed to be getting frisky with an apple at the Hufflepuff table amongst great amounts of giggles. A lemon was rolling around in front of Lily, belting out a song that made her snort into her juice:

_To the apple, to the apple, to the peach!_

"To the peach!" a few peaches echoed.

_To the juice drop down my peel (my peel!)_

_To all these mangoes squeal!_

And indeed the mangoes were squealing loudly, attempting to sing but failing miserably and damaging several people's ear drums.

_Till all berries are frozen, till all kiwis get jammed_

_Till all berries are frozen, till all kiwis get jammed!_

A hand suddenly snapped out and grabbed the lemon, stopping its song. Jacob grabbed a knife from the table and cut the lemon in half while the peaches that had been singing with it yelled in horror and rolled to the opposite end of the table. Jacob then squeezed the juice of the lemon into an empty goblet and placed the squeezed halves down on the table. "Only way to shut them up," he said proudly.

"You did this?" Lily asked, gesturing to a pineapple that looked like it was trying to break-dance using its leaves. "And when did you have time to do this?"

Surely this prank was not the only reason he had sneaked out of the Gryffindor tower last night. But no, it couldn't have been, because Lily would have then seen his dot in the Great Hall or in the kitchen, but it was no where to be seen.

"I was practically up at dawn this morning," Jacob said. "Couldn't get back to sleep so I came down here and did this. I think it's quite brilliant. Professors keep trying to use Silencing Charms on them, but those only make their singing louder."

Katrina picked up an apple that came rolling towards her and immediately bit into it. The apple shrieked and then fell silent. "I'm impressed, Jacob, I'll admit," Katrina said, rolling the apple around in her hand. "It must have been hard charming all the fruit in the school."

Jacob grinned proudly at the praise, especially because it was from Katrina, who it took a lot to impress and who was easily the best female student in their year - Hugo being the best male.

"What do you think, Lily? Think you can top it?"

Lily glanced up at Jacob. The bags under his eyes were worse than ever, but his skin was going back to its normal bronze. His eyes were brighter as well, as if the weight of whatever he had been worrying about had lifted and he was able to now focus on things he loved. Like pranking, Quidditch and - much to Lily's annoyance - bugging her. Though, she wasn't able to miss the way he seemed to be favouring his left arm as he sat down to eat and picked at the fruit whenever it rolled by. Lily inched away from him in annoyance that he would even have the nerve to sit beside her but also because he was clumsy eating food with his left hand.

**XxXxX**

Transfiguration was, as usual, a disaster.

Professor Lamia easily scared everyone. He was tall, imposing and strikingly handsome so that, while girls were terrified of him, whenever he turned his back on them they would openly stare and sigh dreamily. He had a head of very long, gorgeous blonde hair and ivory skin with two different coloured eyes - one vivid green and the other brilliantly blue. He always wore pitch black robes that made his skin seem much paler, a heavy, golden amulet around his neck and a pair of black gloves.

"That was pathetic!" Professor Lamia roared at Lyra Malfoy.

Lily smirked as Delta's arm remained as a cross between the fin of a fish and what looked to be the leg of an ostrich. It was a very odd mix.

They were supposed to be practicing human transfiguration on their partners, transforming one part of their body into some limb of an animal. So far, Phoenix had made one of Lily's ears the size of an elephant's, but it still looked human. Professor Lamia had screamed at Phoenix for over five minutes for that one and changed Lily's ear back to normal. Phoenix had only stared up at the professor coolly and glanced over once at Darren, who looked away quickly.

"I'm so making progress," Phoenix told Lily.

"Has he spoken to you yet?" Lily asked, accidentally transfiguring Phoenix's left leg into the head and neck of a giraffe that had her toppling over from the sudden height difference in her legs.

"Bloody - Ouch! Not quite…but he will. I just need to do something that will catch his attention."

"Like what?"

"No idea," Phoenix admitted. "I don't know what's impressive to him."

"Get him to rescue you from some Slytherins. That might work," Lily said, glaring over at Delta, Kaelan, Hiro and Lyra. She couldn't include Willow in her glare for, as far as she knew, Willow had never done anything to anyone. She just stood in the background, letting her 'friends' do the work.

"Looking a little peaky, Mr Winchester?" Professor Lamia hissed. "You look like you haven't slept in, oh, let's say a week. What could possibly be keeping you up so much? Are you _dreading _something?"

Jacob shook his head. "Nothing, sir. Just been a bit under the weather."

"Your arm looks to be hurting you, maybe you should have Madam Edona look at that for you. Or has she already?"

Lily wasn't the only one staring at Jacob and Professor Lamia. The entire class of sixth year had abandoned their transfiguration and were openly watching. Jacob was the only one not looking, his eyes focused on Hunter, who also seemed just as curious. It appeared that Aiden was right when he said that no one knew what was wrong with Jacob.

"It's my shoulder actually," Jacob replied casually. "Stumbled out of bed badly this morning and hit it on my trunk as I fell. Nasty stinging pain if you ask me. Knocked the breath right out of me." Jacob's hand reached up and massaged his right shoulder, and Lily furrowed her eyebrows as she realized that it was the exact same spot where she had been hurting this morning. Rosalie seemed to notice too, for she glanced over at Lily, then between her and Jacob's shoulders, confused.

"Lying, Mr Winchester?" Professor Lamia hissed, his voice bright but wicked. "Are you sure you even got out of bed this morning? Sure you weren't _sneaking around _all last night in dangerous situations that should not even be permitted in this school? It would be rather disgraceful to Professor McGonagall if anyone _found out_."

Kaelan gave a low howl that made the Slytherins snicker. Darren however, moved as far away from the group as he could, where he ended up almost next to Jacob with a dark look on his kind face. His extremely curly black hair almost fell into his eyes, but Lily could still see the depths of those ochre eyes and Lily understood what Phoenix found so intriguing. The look in his eyes was like…it was like…

Like he _knew_.

Like he knew what was wrong with Jacob lately - like he knew what Professor Lamia was trying to get across. And he did not like it at all.

Jacob's voice was rather tight now as he stared at a point just over Professor Lamia's shoulder. "I think you're digging too deeply into this, _Professor_. Or is it that you just have something against me? You just don't like me."

"I don't like you, Mr Winchester. I despise you - more than I despise all my other students. To me, your kind is the dirt beneath my feet."

Jacob now stared defiantly into Professor Lamia's heterochromatic eyes.

**XxXxX**

"Is he allowed to talk to a student like that?" Alice asked later as they ate dinner, all the singing fruit gone now, though there were many more jugs of juice than normal.

"Apparently," Phoenix said. "'Cause he did. But what do you think he meant by 'your kind'?"

"I've always hated him," Rosalie hissed. "He probably meant Jacob being a pure-blood, as his kind. How dare you say things like that in the middle of class, in front of everyone. I wanted to transfigure his head into the arse of a cow. I only didn't because Alice stopped me."

"You would have made things worse!" Alice said.

"It would have made me feel better," Rosalie said, flicking her blond hair over her shoulder. The move reminded Lily of Auntie Fleur and how Rosalie was so unlike her. Auntie Fleur loved it when people stared at her, while Rosalie, who was undoubtedly more beautiful being half-Veela, glared whenever people stared. She hated the attention her Veela roots gave her.

The others all silently agreed with Rosalie.

The tense mood was broken though, by Alex charging into the Great Hall, accompanied by his fellow first year Gryffindors as he stopped by Lily, his brown eyes bright with excitement. His classmates were staring at him in awe and respect.

"We had our first flying lesson today!" he announced excitedly to her. "And I was the best in the class because of when you took me up on your broom. Mr Era was so impressed that he said I could easily make the team next year if I keep practicing and then I told him that I helped you at the Quidditch tryouts and he laughed and told me that if I'm on your good side I will _definitely_ make the team. And with you helping me at every practice I know I'll be ready and the best player ever!"

"Slow it down, boy!" Lily exclaimed, laughing. "You want on my team, you have to work for it. I'm not going to let you on just because I like you."

"I know!" Alex exclaimed. "I _said _that I was going to work very hard!"

"Good. You saw tryouts this year - they won't be any easier next year. Do you even know what position you want to play?"

Alex nodded before Lily even finished her sentence. "Chaser, like Jake."

Lily winced. Though what Professor Lamia had said to Jacob in Transfiguration had made her at least feel a little sorry for him, it wouldn't clear up years of torture from him. And it was oh so fantastic that Alex was probably going to become a mini-Jacob. Just what she needed. He and Hunter and Louis were definitely going to corrupt this sweet boy; she just hoped that Hugo and Aiden may be able to prevent it.

"You should take pointers from the other Chasers too. Nikko and Will. Especially Will, he's very good. Much better than Jacob."

"Jacob said that Will was a lousy git."

"He what?"

Alex shrugged. "But can I come to practice tonight? I'll help and everything."

Lily pursed her lips but suddenly smirked wickedly over at Jacob before looking back at Alex. "Sure you can, but you'll only be allowed on my pitch if you agree that you'll go to Will and Nikko for help too. Not just Jacob."

Alex eagerly agreed. "I don't have to tell Jake that I'm getting pointers from Will though, do I? He really doesn't like Will."

"Fine," Lily snapped and Alex went running down the table to Jacob and the guys to tell them the news as well. She ignored the amused looks on Rosalie and Phoenix's faces as she continued to eat her dinner. It was Katrina, however, that had to point out what the two girls were thinking.

"He's jealous. It's why he doesn't like Will - because you do," she explained.

"I like Will because he doesn't act like a prat."

"You like Will because he's gorgeous," Rosalie said.

"While I will admit that he is gorgeous," Lily told her, "he's my gorgeous _friend_. Which means off-limits. Especially because he's on my Quidditch team as well and I will not ruin that because if I date Will then Jacob will be jealous and it will cause problems between them that will ultimately cause problems with my team and I will not lose the Quidditch Cup this year."

"You've won the Quidditch Cup every year," Alice reminded her.

"So I want to keep the streak going."

"You still can while dating Will," Rosalie said.

"Or Jacob," Phoenix added.

Lily stared at Phoenix. "And now you've crossed into enemy territory."

**XxXxX**

**I love Alex, he's adorable :)**

**Review please! I mean it, really! I love reviews and the more reviews I get the faster I update! **

**PLEAAASSSSEEEEE! I'm begging here!**


	11. The Hogsmeade Weekend

It was the announcement made at the end of September that sent the entire school into a frenzy. All the Gryffindors were in the common room, doing their assigned homework or sitting with their friends. Lily was in a squishy armchair near the fire, the brown leather bound sketchbook the Lupins had given her in her lap. Jacob was stretched out on the couch and was playing his guitar, muttering to himself sometimes before he would stop playing and write something in the red book by his hip. Rosalie was playing with Lily's Polaroid camera, taking pictures of each of their friends and waving around the picture happily until it appeared. Phoenix, it seemed, had cornered Aiden and had finally gotten him to talk to her about Darren Clowes, which he looked regretful of.

Hugo and Katrina were both helping Alex and a few of his friends with their schoolwork. Lily tried to keep down her smirk as their knees continuously bumped underneath the table. Louis and Hunter were playing an intense game of Wizard's Chess with Alice watching. She clapped delightedly whenever Louis eliminated one of Hunter's players.

Lily kept her sketchbook close to her chest as she subtly peaked up every now and then to draw her subject.

Will was lazing in the armchair across from her, his friends scattered around him on cushions on the floor as if he were their king and they his servants. Lily couldn't help but be entranced as the firelight flickered on his dark hair and his copper skin. This time, when Will caught her looking at him, he flashed her a brilliant smile that she returned and no blush filled her cheeks. There was only a quicker beating to her heart.

She may not have admitted to her girlfriends, but she couldn't help but imagine herself dating Will, the gorgeous, seventh year boy. She had to admit that just the _idea _of what other people may think of them together sounded appealing, just as appealing as the idea of being with him. They would probably be seen as the 'it' couple as Victoire and Teddy had once been when they were at Hogwarts. She and Will were both very good Quidditch players, he was gorgeous, she was pretty, and -

And how come she was suddenly so obsessed with appearances?

Will was very close to her. She could imagine herself being with him and enjoying it and that was all that mattered.

So why was she so reluctant?

Lily was thankfully saved from her own thoughts by Professor Rosewood. As she was climbing in through the portrait hole, the common room fell silent, wondering why a professor was in the room. Professor Rosewood looked excited as she waved her hands and made sure all attention was focused on her, not that it wasn't already.

"Okay, okay everyone!" Professor Rosewood called. "Now, as we speak, the other Heads are telling their houses the exact same thing I am about to tell you, though I doubt they are as enthusiastic as me. I have the pleasure of announcing that Hogwarts will be holding a masquerade ball. Now wait!" she yelled as the common room exploded with noise as all the Gryffindors reacted. "Wait now! Only fifth years and above are permitted to attend the ball. I know, I'm sorry."

The fourth years and below were protesting loudly, but Lily's eye was drawn over to where Katrina was listening intently to Professor Rosewood while sending Hugo looks that he either missed or was too oblivious to notice. Lily guessed the latter - Hugo was just as blind as Uncle Ron.

"Ah, don't start choosing your dates!" Professor Rosewood said, as it was obvious that it was what people were doing - sending suggestive smiles across the room at someone. "This is why it is a _masquerade_! I want you to go full out, even charming your hair a different colour if you have to. At the ball, I want you to mingle with your fellow schoolmates. But most of all, I want you all to look so damn good it puts all those other houses to shame!"

The common room cheered, slightly shocked that a professor had cursed, but impressed nonetheless and excited for the ball which, Professor Rosewood explain, would take place on October thirty-first.

**XxXxX**

The next morning, from the begging brought on by the girls, Lily had gone up to the Owlery first thing before breakfast and sent out a letter to her Auntie Fleur who ran the ever popular Wizarding witch wear boutiques La Sorcière. Dominique worked alongside her mother, helping design clothes and run the many store branches. Victoire had worked with her mother and sister for a time, until she had decided to become a Healer.

Lily reached the top step of the Owlery, "Come here, Circe!" Lily called.

A snowy white owl with wings flecked with some small speckles of black, landed lightly down on Lily's shoulder. Circe had been an extra birthday present from her parents, sent to her during the first week of school. Lily was thankful for the owl, since Albus had left school and taken his barn owl, Atlas, with him. Circe was the only snowy owl that the Potters owned. Harry had refused to get another one and instead preferred a large screech owl, saying that no owl could possibly replace his Hedwig. Lily had always loved the stories her daddy would tell her about Hedwig's abnormally human emotions and the many times she had gotten angry at him. As soon as Circe had shown up at breakfast the one day, Lily had gone cheery and hysterical.

"Take this to Auntie Fleur," Lily said to Circe. The owl's great yellow eyes only stared until Lily sighed and dug an owl treat out of her pocket and gave it to the owl, who then took off. Circe was definitely not like Hedwig, for Circe always had to be bribed to deliver a letter.

"Hey, Lily."

Lily turned at the sound of the voice, smiling when she saw that it was Will that was entering the Owlery. As soon as he appeared, a great horned owl left its perch and landed gently on his outstretched arm.

"Who were you sending an owl to?" he asked as he secured his own letter to his owl's leg.

"My aunt. She owns the witch wear boutique down in Hogsmeade. The girls wanted me to ask if she would be at that shop this weekend on the Hogsmeade trip to help us pick out dresses for the ball," Lily explained. "What about you?"

"Sending a letter to my mum to send me my dress robes," he said, sending his owl flying out the window of the Owlery. It was silent as they watched the owl fly out of sight before he looked at Lily again. "I think Professor Rosewood was just suggesting that we don't take dates to the ball, don't you? I mean, they can't stop us, can they? So I've been thinking since it was announced last night and decided that - screw it, I'm going to ask a girl to the ball."

"Who are you asking?"

The way he smiled at her instantly told her exactly who he was going to ask, but he said, "Well, you'll just have to find out when I ask."

A blush rose up to Lily's cheeks and she surprised herself by saying, "Well, I don't think I'll bring a date. Professor Rosewood is right - it will ruin the whole point of the ball and I also like to keep people guessing."

Was she trying to hint that she didn't want him to ask her?

What the bloody hell was she doing?

The disappointment was clear on Will's face but he continued smiling. "Pity. I guess I'll just have to ask _that girl_ to dance with me when the ball comes."

Lily winked at him as she left the Owlery and called over her shoulder, "You'll have to find her first, Will!"

**XxXxX**

"You did what?" Phoenix yelled.

Lily flinched. She, Rosalie and Phoenix were walking down High Street in Hogsmeade, having just left Alice and Katrina at Honeydukes, as the girls were having difficulty picking out what candies they wanted while the other three wanted to visit Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. Lily adjusted the white bow she had tied in her hair and grinned sheepishly at the glaring black-haired girl. Lily had just explained to the two girls what had occurred in the Owlery just days before and how awkward the Quidditch practice had been, with Will coming close and grinning or winking at her every chance he got and it wasn't long before Jacob had caught on and paid Leo Eckart two galleons to lob a Bludger right at Will.

"Calm down, Feens," Rosalie said, digging through her Honeydukes bag. "I think what Lily did was a fantastic idea. It keeps him waiting," she explained when Phoenix now turned her glare onto her. "He's going to be impatient for the ball and be hooked on Lily for the next while, hoping and waiting."

Phoenix pushed back her black hair and turned her gaze away from both girls. "Still!" she cried. "She had Will, who has to be _the most_ attractive guy in seventh year, practically ask her to the ball and she basically said no! How much more insane could you get, Lily? What were you thinking?"

Lily didn't know what she had been thinking, and she definitely knew that what Rosalie suggested hadn't been on her mind at all at the time. The words had just poured from her mouth before she had been able to stop them - like word vomit.

And for some reason, she didn't feel like she had regretted it.

Rosalie laughed. "How much more insane can she get?" she repeated Phoenix's words. "Well, she could have actually said no."

"Then I would have gotten some Veritaserum and demanded to know who this imposter is because it is definitely not my best friend," Phoenix stated.

"Whatever," Lily muttered to them. "Can we just drop it? I regret it enough."

Which she really didn't, but they didn't need to know that.

When they entered Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, Lily was tempted to turn right around and head back out the door when she saw Jacob in there with Hunter and Louis but was stopped when she noticed that in the shop that day was Uncle George, his son Fred and James, who Jacob was talking to. It was mostly the ecstatic look on James's face that stopped her. When James saw her, he immediately moved past Jacob and the others and swept her up into a hug so large that he lifted her off the ground and spun her around.

"I did it, Lily! I did it!" he exclaimed, setting her down on the ground only to place a hard, wet kiss on her forehead.

"Whoa, James, whoa!" she protested, pushing her brother away. "You did what?"

James ran a hand through his messy black hair, his brown eyes bright. "I got onto a professional Quidditch team! Of course that means I have to stop working here with Uncle George and Fred, but it's a _professional Quidditch team_! The Appleby Arrows, can you believe it? They owled me just last night. I was out with Ember at the time but as soon as I got home Mum and Dad both attacked me at the door with the news. Might have fainted when they told me, but I can't remember because all I could remember was that I had made it! It's just…I mean… I can't…"

"Believe it?" Lily suggested, grinning at her brother. James had been out of school for three years now and had been trying non-stop to get onto a Quidditch team, as he was even more obsessed with Quidditch than she was. His girlfriend, Ember Athens, must have been extremely excited as well. She had been a Slytherin in James's year but one of his best friends and in his fourth year became his girlfriend. They had often been on the rocks for both were diehard Quidditch players and hated when the other's team beat theirs. Ember was tough and fierce - she was exactly what James had needed to keep him from chasing every girl in sight and often gave him hell when he tried. James, like Albus, had been affected by the Potter curse, for Ember had a head of dark red hair.

"Yeah!" James said. He let out a loud laugh and picked Lily up once again in a hug that had her gasping for breath. "They haven't told me when my first game will be," he said when he set her down, "but when I find out I'll send you a letter because I want you, Mum, Dad and Al to be there. Professor McGonagall will definitely let you leave school for that day if you tell her that I _made it_!"

"I think we get the point, Jamie," Fred said, coming up beside him. Fred was shorter than James, and stocky like Uncle George, with skin that was lighter than his sister's, Roxanne, mocha colour, but darker than James's white and hair that was vivid red like Lily's. "And I feel offended that I'm not in that list of people."

"Well I don't like you very much," James joked to his cousin.

Fred laughed and punched his shoulder, mock offended.

They left the shop after checking out their purchases and chatting with her Uncle George for awhile, and Lily groaned when Jacob and Hunter followed, Louis staying back to help Uncle George with a new product.

"What do you want, Winchester?" Lily snapped when she saw that the two boys were following her, Rosalie and Phoenix.

"Just admiring you from afar, Tiger Lily," he said. "Have I told you how much I love to see you wearing a white dress?"

Lily, annoyed, held her grey jacket close over the dress she wore and walked a little faster. It was her turn to glare as Rosalie laughed loudly. The blonde tried to stifle her giggles with her fist. Lily's stomach flipped in disgust as she imagined Jacob imagining her in a different white dress. But that was it, it was only ever going to be his imagination, and she was sure she was never going to wear a white dress in front of him again.

"And have I told you," she replied. "how much I love not seeing you?"

"Where are you girls heading this fine afternoon?" Hunter asked.

They didn't answer as Hunter had looked ahead and then turned to Rosalie when he saw that La Sorcière was only a few doors away from them. "Picking out your dresses for the ball? I would be glad to accompany you and hold you dresses in the dressing room for you."

Rosalie smirked at him. "You'll have to wait for the ball to see my dress, Payne."

"You're putting me in pain by making me wait so long, Valentine."

"A pun on your own name? Not funny." But Rosalie contradicted her own words by laughing a little as Lily snorted, grabbed hers and Phoenix's arms and pulled them towards the door of La Sorcière. Just as they were about to enter though, the door opened and Gwen Lacefield stepped out.

Gwen was a seventh year Ravenclaw, but otherwise known to Lily as Albus's girlfriend. Lily had been shocked and amused when both Albus and James had brought their girlfriends home for dinner for the first time on the same night, and both girls had shown up, extremely different but both redheaded. Unlike Ember who was loud and vivacious, Gwen was more subdued, soft and shy. She had long, ginger hair in curls, soft blue eyes behind rectangular glasses and pale skin.

"Hello, Lily," she said, noticing the other redhead. "I was just picking out my dress for the ball. I'm glad that it's a masquerade - it means I don't have to worry about a date and upsetting Albus."

Lily shook her head at the girl. "Albus is such a pushover that you wouldn't have to worry. He wouldn't care if you brought a different guy to the ball, as long as the guy didn't steal you away from him."

"Ah, Gwenie! How are you, darling?" Jacob drawled.

Gwen stared at him in surprise and blinked.

"Do we still have a study session set up for Thursday?" he continued as if he didn't notice the girl's sudden awkwardness. "Because I am doing quite badly in History of Magic right now and I could go for one of your riveting explanations on the Ancient Egyptian Wizards," he said with a wink.

"Uh…yes, right, Thursday - I'll be there…bye Lily." And Gwen hurried away.

Lily knew that Gwen was probably the best one to go to for History of Magic help because it was her favourite subject and she was able to turn Professor Binns's boring lectures into interesting stories, but still…

"There's no need to hit on her!" Lily snapped at Jacob. "Especially when she is my brother's girlfriend, you prat!"

Jacob looked shocked. "I was not hitting on her!"

"Don't even, Winchester! You're sick!"

Lily slammed the door of the shop closed behind her after she pushed Rosalie and Phoenix inside, leaving Jacob standing there with his mouth opening and closing and Hunter chuckling madly.

Katrina and Alice were already inside the store as they had all planned to meet there at that time. The boutique was filled top to bottom in clothing of every colour and size and style. Dresses took up most of the room at the moment, for Auntie Fleur and Dominique must have known that the next month would be their busiest with girls searching for the perfect dress. It was easy to tell which clothes Dominique designed and which Auntie Fleur did, for Dominique's tended to be darker and richer in colours and a more sexy and dangerous style while Auntie Fleur tended to lean towards sweet and cute and colours that were soft and bright.

One wall was covered completely in Venetian masks of every style and colour as well. Lily immediately saw the one she wanted and headed straight towards it, grabbing onto Dominique's hand as she passed. Dominique was tall and willowy, like her mother, but with long, flowing red hair though her mother's blue eyes. She was the only Veela, full or part, Lily had ever seen without blonde hair.

"So was that the infamous Jacob Winchester you just slammed the door on?" Dominique asked as she directed the mask Lily pointed to off the wall and into her hand with her wand.

"Does everyone in our family know about him?"

"Pretty much," Dominique nodded, grinning teasingly at Lily.

Lily loved Dominique just as much as she loved her older sister, Victoire, though the sisters were completely different. Victoire was kinder, more gentle and softer with her teasing while Dominique was, simply put, a badass. She didn't care what anyone thought of her or her actions and often went out of her way to show it - especially with her clothing. At the moment, Dominique was wearing short shorts with black suspender fishnets, a studded belt and wristbands and fingerless gloves.

"You know, this is the only say your getting," Dominique said, handing the mask to Lily.

"What?"

"Lily!" Auntie Fleur called happily, coming out from the back of the shop and carrying something that was wrapped in a black cloth. "Dominique and I 'ave chosen ze best dress for you. It comes from Dominique's new collection zat we 'ave not released yet. I simply love it!"

Dominique beamed, leading Lily over to the counter Auntie Fleur placed the covered dress down on. The other girls gathered round with her. When it was revealed, Phoenix sighed enviously, Rosalie smirked, Alice gasped and Katrina studied it curiously.

"I can't wear that!" Lily exclaimed. "It will clash with -"

"No it won't," Dominique said before Lily could finish. "Now, try it on and don't complain. I know what I'm doing."

Auntie Fleur nodded. "It will work, Lily. Zough, if it makes you feel better, I wanted to put you in a lovely white dress zat I -"

"I'll try it on."


	12. Trouble On the Pitch

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, nor will I ever, which is seriously making me sad.**

**Wow, I got more reviews for the last chapter than expected. That's awesome! Thank you!**

**XxXxX**

After the Hogsmeade trip, Lily had returned directly to her dorm in the Gryffindor tower and had stuffed her new gown unceremoniously into her trunk, beneath a set of Muggle clothes. It wasn't that the dress was ugly - no, it was really beautiful, but it made her rather bitter that she had no say. What was worse, was that Rosalie had not stopped teasing her about Auntie Fleur wanting to put her in a white dress almost immediately after Jacob had said that he loved her in the colour.

The next day, Lily hurried down to the Quidditch pitch, her broomstick in hand. She had been given detention earlier that day by Professor McKnight. He, apparently, did not find it funny that she had charmed every suit of armour in the school to dance the Time Warp every time a teacher walked by. Lily had thought it had been hilarious, especially when one suit of armour had done to pelvic thrust right at Professor McGonagall, who, to the shock of all the students that had been in the vicinity, only grinned slightly and instead charmed the armour to waltz with itself.

"A much more respectable dance," she said.

Lily exploded through the entrance to the pitch, only to stop dead and curse herself immensely for ever thinking it was a smart idea to leave Jacob Winchester in charge of the team while she was in detention.

Every male on her team, which to mean sixth-sevenths of the team, was entirely shirtless, despite the cold October air. They had discarded their outer robes, which were thrown haphazardly all over the pitch, and stripped themselves of the red and gold shirt so that they were only clad in the white pants, their brown leather arm guards and their shoes. They were all covered in sweat, which flew off them with every sharp move. Alex, sitting in the stands, was looking rather disgusted. The hem of his robe was over his head, protecting him from flying drops of sweat.

Lily spluttered, her face profusely red as she screamed, "WINCHESTER!"

All the players stopped. The Quaffle was in the area between Nikko and Will and dropping slowly to the ground. Leo Eckart only just missed being hit by a Bludger.

Jacob grinned as he approached her. "How was detention?" he asked casually. "Brilliant prank, by the way. Even McGonagall enjoyed it."

"Why are - What is the…I mean - Why are you all shirtless?" Lily yelled.

Jacob cocked an eyebrow at her. "Well, if you notice, Potter, I, in fact, happen to be wearing my shirt."

And he indeed was wearing the red and gold shirt of the Quidditch uniforms, though the sleeves were rolled up to his elbows and there was a large damp spot around his neck. Lily thought this odd. Why would Winchester, of all people, want to keep his shirt on if everyone else didn't? He normally loved to show off; Lily couldn't deny that he did have a bit more to display then some of the others.

"Oh, shut up, Winchester!" Lily snapped. "Continue practicing!"

She turned and her heel and stormed into the Gryffindor changing room. Throwing on her robes, she returned to the pitch. She called the attention of all her players, who flew down to her.

"Alright," she said, ignoring their amused looks at her flustered state. "The first match against Slytherin is in a month. And I know you want to beat them as much as I do. So, please, Hunter, will you stop trying to impress those girls over there and just focus on saving shots? They'll be impressed enough if we win the match. Derek, work on your aim. You got the force but I want you to be able to knock those Slytherin players off their brooms with every hit."

The team nodded and climbed onto the brooms again and took off.

Lily glanced into the stands where Alex was sitting in the first row.

"Hey, Alex! Release the Snitch for me, okay?"

Alex nodded and stood up. He brought his fist back and launch the Snitch into the air. It seemed that he had been playing with it since Lily missed a bit of practice.

Lily mounted her broom and flew, giving the Snitch a few minutes and so she could watch her team practice.

Leo was sending Bludgers in Derek's direction, helping him with aim. Hunter saved every shot that the Chasers made. It was the Chasers though, that Lily narrowed her eyes at. The Quaffle was being passed back and forth rapidly between them as they flew across the pitch at Hunter. Will passed to Nikko, who passed it to Jacob, who tossed it back to Nikko, then he lobbed it at Will. Will sent the Quaffle in a great arc to Nikko, who rolled before he caught it and threw it, while he was upside down, to Jacob. Jacob just caught the dimpled ball with the tips of his fingers and shot it at Hunter, who dove to the right and kicked the ball back to Jacob, who passed to Nikko.

"You three!" Lily called across the field. "Chasers, come here!"

Leo and Derek snickered at the annoyed look on Lily's face but continued to beat a Bludger between them while sending the other flying around the pitch. Hunter hovered in front of the Goal posts, arms over his chest for he had nothing to do now.

Jacob, Nikko and Will flew over to Lily and stopped in front of her.

"What," she began, her voice hard, "was that? Not you, Nikko, you were brilliant. But you two! Is there a reason why the damn ball always has to go to Nikko first before it makes it to either of you?"

Jacob and Will looked at each other and then looked away quickly.

"Well, you see," Jacob said, "Nikko is closer to me, so it's easier for me to toss him the Quaffle instead of throwing it over Nikko to him or worrying that it won't make it to him."

"Yeah," Will nodded. "Who knows if Jacob's throws can make it to me?"

Jacob glowered at Will. "And I don't want to _hurt_ Schell if I throw the ball to hard at him. It might _accidentally _hit him in the head and crack it open, though I don't think it would do much, what with that _thick head_ -"

Lily waved her hands frantically, both her and Nikko oblivious to what was going on between the two black-haired boys. "I don't care what it is!" she exclaimed. "But I will not have our chances against Slytherin ruined because my team isn't acting _like a team_! I want you to pass the Quaffle to each other - all three of you - because if you keep doing what you're doing, the Keeper will easily be able to tell exactly who the ball is going to. Get over it and do better!"

Jacob and Will glared resentfully at each other as Lily mounted her broom again and took off, zooming towards the flash of gold that she had seen above the heads of the gaggle of girls in the stands. Elodie's bright yellow headband was eye-catching amongst all the girls while her voice was shriller and louder than the rest as she tried to catch Jacob's attention. The other girls were all giggling madly at the bare-chested boys of the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

Lily crashed through the crowd of girls who all screamed and threw themselves out of the way. Lily's hand wrapped tightly around the Snitch. She smiled victoriously down at the girls who glared up at her, Elodie fixing her headband and throwing cruel words at Lily that seemed to just roll off of her. It was only _Elodie_ after all.

Lily beamed over at Alex across the pitch as he clapped for Lily. But a voice soon joined Alex's clapping.

"That was an amazing catch, Lily!" Evan Levine called. He and a few of his fellow Ravenclaws sat in the row immediately behind Alex. The flush in Evan's cheeks was still visible even in the waning light of the sunset. "Superb!"

"Mate!" A seventh year Ravenclaw exclaimed. "You're betraying our team!"

The others snickered while Evan's cheering grew slightly less enthusiastic, but he still applauded Lily. Lily noticed that the seventh year was Peter Thorne, who she had both dated and dumped rather coldly in her fourth year. That, and Jacob had been hexing him whenever he walked by for dating Lily, had made Peter bitter towards any Gryffindors, which the Gryffindor boys had apparently made known to Alex.

Alex looked uncomfortably at the line of boys behind him and began inching his way down the bench until he sat beside Sophie Winchester, who smiled kindly at him. She glanced over at Evan and laughed, though not meanly, which only seemed to make his blush deepen.

As the sun disappeared behind the hills, the crowd in the stands began to disperse. Lily caught the Snitch one last time and landed by the open box beside Alex. She pushed the Golden Snitch into its holding place and smiled at Alex, Sophie and Farrow. Farrow's slanted eyes were fixed intently on the pitch, as well as Sophie's; Sophie's hands were clenched tightly around Farrow's arm. Alex helped Lily lift the box to take onto the pitch, but as soon as Lily turned around, she saw what the two girls had been staring at.

The entire team had landed on the ground, brooms discarded as Jacob and Will seemed to be having a shouting match, which was escalating every second. Leo and Derek Eckart were waving their Beaters' bats over their heads, egging the two boys on with Hunter, while Nikko stood nearby, looking nervous and useless. Several people in the stands had stopped their departure and were instead all flocking to the closest edges of the stands, watching the arguing intently.

"That was deliberate!" Will snapped, one hand holding the side of his face.

Jacob smirked. "Hey, I didn't think you'd be able to catch my throws. Too strong for you, Schell?"

"You're funny, Winchester, hilarious!" Will took a step forwards. "I swear to God, if you -"

"What are you going to do, Schell? Hit me? We both know I'm stronger than you. I'll win." The smirk on Jacob's face was even more pronounced now. "The stronger blokes always win, Schell."

Lily was not the only one that sense a double meaning behind Jacob's words.

Will's eyes narrowed at Jacob. "What are you talking about, Winchester?"

Jacob and Hunter both laughed, doing that mind reading thing they often did that annoyed Lily. "I heard what happened in the Owlery a little while ago, Schell," Jacob said. "Rejected!"

Leo, Derek, Hunter and Jacob's laughs were mocking now, as if the Eckart brothers also knew what had happened to Will in the Owlery. Lily realized with a shock that she had been in the Owlery with Will a few days ago and that she had, without a better word to describe it, had rejected his invitation to go to the ball with him.

_Oh no…_

"You don't know what you're talking about!" Will roared.

"Don't I?" Jacob asked, calm compared to Will. "I've been rejected by Lily enough to know what it's like. But you, what's your excuse? Why did she turn you down?"

"She did not -"

"She did!" Jacob sniggered. "Why would she want you, anyways? You're nothing compared - Oomp!"

Will had seemed beyond words at this point. As Jacob spoke, he shook with anger and finally launched himself at Jacob, catching him in the ribs and knocking them both back onto the grass of the pitch. The cheers from the watching crowd, the Eckart brothers and Hunter rose loudly, cheering for one of the boys and jeering the other. Elodie was screaming shrilly, her wand in her hand but not able to use it due to Jacob and Will rolling around, punching their fists wherever they could reach.

Lily had dropped the box, lurching Alex down with it, and was running across the pitch, Sophie and Farrow directly behind her. She pulled her wand out as she heard both boys grunting in pain, their blows harder than the last. Through the noise, one of them cried out in pain, louder than all the cheers and jeers, and the cry was so pain filled that all noise instantly stopped. But it was as if it hadn't been either Jacob or Will who cried out, for the boys continued to lay their fists into every inch of skin, intending to hurt and mark the other with as many cuts and bruises as possible.

Lily pointed her wand at the boys. "_Flipendo!"_ she yelled.

Jacob and Will were thrown back away from each other, but the spell only seemed to cause more pain for the both of them. Jacob landed heavily by Nikko's feet, his jaw clenched and arms across his stomach while Will slid a few feet to where Lily was. She quickly dropped down beside him when she noticed his leg was at an odd angle.

"Are you okay?" she asked, her voice emotionless.

Will grunted. "M-my leg-g."

His face was turning an unhealthy green. Jacob, across from his, was white with pain. Hunter and Sophie had both hurried over to him while Farrow knelt by Will's leg and stared, rather disgusted, at it.

Lily's vision was red at the edges, and her teeth ground against each other. "You two -" she hissed to the Eckart brothers, "- get him up to the hospital wing, now! Hunter - Nikko - get Jacob there as well. And for Merlin's sake, keep them the hell away from each other! Go!"

Without waiting for a reply, Lily grabbed the Beaters bats from Leo and Derek, the Quaffle from Nikko, and began stalking back over to where she had left Alex with the box.

"Is he okay?" Alex asked. "Is Jacob hurt?"

"Yes!" Lily snapped. "And he deserves it! Both of them do!" She spun on Alex and glared at him. "Go up to the common room. I don't want to hear that you've been down to the hospital wing to see Jacob, got it?"

Alex nodded hurriedly and was out of sight in the blink of an eye.

Ten minutes later, the pitch was empty of all gossiping students and Lily had secured both Bludgers into the box, though she didn't remember how - or when - she had gotten them in there. She put all the discarded brooms away in the broom shed and tossed the dirty Quidditch uniforms into their respective lockers. The heat of the water in her shower felt cold compared to how hot she felt, anger still boiling through her.

She didn't know if the anger was directed at Will or Jacob or both of them, but all she knew was that she was ticked and it was going to be a long time before she could speak calmly with either of them. Jacob was always a prat, but he had gone too far this time, though Lily expected Will of all people to keep his head in an argument. She saw Will argue with people and he was always so calm, so what was it about Jacob that had him so riled up? It was Jacob! Will should have known not to take him seriously; Jacob had said it himself, Lily had rejected him loads of times! And she hadn't even really rejected Will. She said she'd see him at the ball - she was looking forwards to seeing him there.

_Boys! _Lily thought madly. S_o damn complicated!_

Unable to put it off any longer, Lily dressed and stalked to the hospital wing.

Inside, Jacob and Will were in beds across the room from one another, Leo, Derek and Farrow around Will's bed and Nikko, Hunter and Sophie around Jacob's. Madam Edona hurried towards Jacob, a steaming potion in either of her hands which she made him drink one of the goblets carefully. Lily followed behind Madam Edona as she moved towards Will's bed now and gave him the other potion. Farrow seemed to be telling Will off for attacking Jacob, while Sophie, on the other side of the room, was fretting over her brother.

"Just you wait until Mum hears about this, which she's going to!" Farrow hissed to Will. "And you know that she will! Not even from me either; Professor McGonagall is going to find out what happened any minute now and then Professor Rosewood will give you detention and Mum's letter will come saying that _I _should have done something to stop the fight! You _know_ that she'll find a way to blame this on me. She always does, so thanks a lot you giant -"

"_Shut up, Helga_!" Will snapped.

Farrow gasped. "You are a complete and utter GIT!"

She smacked Will directly on a large, purple bruise on his arm and stalked away, muttering under her breath.

"What's the damage?" Lily asked Madam Edona. Will looked up, surprised, but the look was quickly replaced by shame and embarrassment. The Eckart brothers chuckled under their breath.

"Lily, I -"

Lily ignored him and continued to look at Madam Edona who was surveying Will. "From what I gather," she said, prodding Will with her wand; Will winced when she hit his leg, "don't move, boy! What I gather is that it is just a few minor scrapes and bruises. The worst of it is his broken leg, though I can mend that in a second. Jacob seems to have fractured a rib or two -" Madam Edona sent a sharp look at Will, "- and a black eye, as well as the same scrapes and bruises. Over all, nothing that will harm them long term, but I will be keeping them overnight, just in case." She smiled down at Lily. "You'll have your Quidditch players back soon. It's a good thing _someone _had the sense to break up the fight. What were they fighting over anyways?"

Lily could feel her ears turning red out of anger and embarrassment. "I have _no _idea," she muttered.

Madam Edona patted Lily's cheek maternally and gave Lily another smile that told the redhead that the matron knew exactly what the fight had been about.

When Madam Edona returned to her office to fetch more bandages, Lily moved to stand in the spot near the end of both beds, and glared at the occupants of the room.

"All of you -" She looked around at those standing by the beds, "- get out, I need to speak with these two. Hunter," she snapped when the messy haired boy made no sign of moving like all the others were, "if you don't leave now, I swear that I will take you off the team!"

Hunter rolled his eyes but clapped Jacob on the shoulder, grinning sheepishly when Jacob winced. "Sorry, mate. See you later. Don't let Potter kill you."

"Git," Lily hissed. "Sophie, can you tell Alex that he can come down if he wants? I think I was a little too hard on him."

The black-haired girl smiled and nodded at Lily. She grabbed onto Hunter's wrist and began pulling him from the room, his expression bewildered. It seemed that Sophie was a lot stronger than she looked. When the room was empty, Lily made sure that Madam Edona wasn't returning yet before she stared first at Will, then to Jacob.

"And just what," she murmured, "was that fight about? Don't talk!" she barked at Will as he began to open his mouth to reply. Jacob remained silent, arms crossed over his chest, glowering at Will. "When I said to start acting like a team, I didn't mean to chuck the damn Quaffle at each other with the intent to hurt! Look, I don't care if you hate each other, I don't care if you throw insults at each other at every chance, but if you keep injuring each other _and _our Quidditch team, I will kill you both! Get over yourselves and deal with it! You're on the same team so you're going to have to deal with each other, so I want you to either settle your differences or just _ignore them_. And by the looks on your faces -" she said when they continued to glare at each other, "- you're not just going to get over whatever the hell the problem is. From now on, you two are strangers - ignore each other in the halls, at dinner, in the common room, but when you're on the pitch, act civilly and pass the damn Quaffle to each other! Okay? If you don't, I won't hesitate to kick the next person who causes a fight off of my team."

She was breathing heavily when she finished, watching each boy for their reaction. Will sighed and leaned back against his pillows, rubbing his forehead. Jacob, however, turned his gaze to Lily and gave her an award winning smile. "I have no idea who you're even talking about, Potter. There's no one here but me and you."

Lily rolled her eyes but nodded. "You and me alone will never happen in reality, Winchester, but yes, you've got the idea." She turned around and started to leave. "Alex will probably be here to visit you any moment, Winchester. I'm going up to the common room, so try not to kill each other overnight."

"Night, Potter!"

Lily glanced over her shoulder when she reached the doors. Jacob was grinning brightly, but across the room, Will said something too low for Lily to hear and the words had Jacob's head snapping towards him to retort with a hiss of words of his own.

Lily threw her head back and sighed as she shut the door of the hospital wing behind her. She didn't know why she bothered telling them off in the first place. Boys were so hardheaded sometimes that it was just a waste of time to even bother talking to them.

Alex smiled up at her as he slipped under her arm and into the hospital wing.

**XxXxX**

**Poor Lily...Actually, not really. **

**Anyways, review please!**


	13. Phoenix Fights Back

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, but I do own the allergy pills I just took that are knocking me out as I type.**

**Soooooo tireddddd...**

**XxXxX  
**

"I can't believe they _actually _fought!" Rosalie exclaimed the next morning, sitting on her bed with her legs crossed under her. The gossip of Jacob and Will fighting at Quidditch practice last night had spread quickly, as Lily had basically been assaulted the moment she had stepped into the common room. She had only escaped from the onslaught of questions about what happened and why they fought by Phoenix and Rosalie grabbing her arms and forcefully pulling her from the crowd and up to the dormitory.

Lily was holding Blanca in her arms like a baby, the white cat purring loudly still and nudging her head against Lily's chin. "You should have seen them going at it. Heck, they were breaking bones!"

"What were they fighting over though?" Alice asked, leaning close to Lily. "Surely it wasn't just over tossing the Quaffle to each other?"

Phoenix snorted. "Once again, Alice, you demonstrate just how naïve you can be. It's obvious what their fight was over." Phoenix smirked at Lily. "Everyone knows about what happened in the Owlery, Lily. You really wounded the boy's ego."

"He was fine with it whenever I saw him," Lily shrugged. "Kept giving me that eye at practice one time. Winchester noticed."

"Of course Jacob noticed and of course Will acted fine whenever you saw him!" Phoenix exclaimed. "Merlin, I swear you're just as naïve as Alice sometimes. Will had to seem cheerful 'cause he didn't want you to think that he was pissed off at the rejection, which he _was_! So, obviously Jacob was going to use this to his advantage at getting under Will's skin, because he's _jealous _of Will. He's been working four years to get you and then Will suddenly takes an interest in you this year and you're instantly okay with that. Jacob's pissed as much as Will is."

"Congrats, Lily," Rosalie said. "You've pissed off two bloody gorgeous boys."

Lily dropped Blanca down onto her lap and absentmindedly petted her back. "Well, if they want me so bad, they're just going to have to deal with it. I'm difficult. And I really don't care if Winchester is pissed at me."

"It's clear that he is not angry with _you_, Lily," Katrina said, wiping her glasses off on her robe. "It's the circumstances. It's Will. It's why he riled Will up at practice. Jacob knows that he's further behind in the race against Will to you, he _knows_ he's losing, so he's trying to make Will look bad in front of you."

Phoenix nodded. "It's so obvious what's going to happen that even Jacob can see it coming. You and Will are going to leave Jacob in the dust. The only thing that's more obvious than that is Katrina and Hugo snogging in the library stacks."

Katrina flushed bright red. "We did not!"

"Oh, please," Rosalie said. "I caught you two last week and Phoenix got you the week before. But anyways, speaking of snogging, Phoenix," Rosalie's words were hissed now as she stared at her black-haired friend, who suddenly looked guilty, "how's the bet going? Has Darren Clowes even spoken a word to you yet? No, he hasn't, has he? Clearly not considering I caught you practically shagging that Hufflepuff boy in our year, Jason Higgs! I swear, Feens, if you lose this bet, I will bury you six feet in the ground with only the worms for company!"

"I'm sorry!" Phoenix moaned. "But he's so reclusive! He doesn't react to any of my advances and he spends all his spare time in the Slytherin common room. And - and I've been so deprived lately because I've been so focused on him and Jason was…there! He was so _willing_! I couldn't resist."

Lily laughed. "Winchester has been having more luck with him than you. He's been sitting with Payne and him for the past month or so in Transfiguration. Hell, he even says hi to me every now and then!"

"Not helping, Lily!" Phoenix snapped then rounded on Katrina who was looking quite relieved that the conversation had turned off of her. "And don't think we're done with you! We're talking about you and Hugo tonight!"

"Yeah," Lily said. "Really, Kat, my cousin? Ew."

**XxXxX**

In Muggle Studies, which was a class that was filled with almost all the sixth years for it was seen as an easy class, though every Slytherin was not present, Lily had the luck of being paired with Jacob, who was fully healed, on a project that they were supposed to do on a topic of their choice that demonstrated the difference between Muggles and Wizards. Lily had not missed the high-five Jacob had given Hunter before he had left to join his Ravenclaw partner.

"We could show the differences between Muggle and Wizard art," Lily suggested.

"I get that you love all that art stuff, Potter," Jacob said. "And you're good and all but I want something that's at least a bit interesting."

"It is interesting!"

"Art's a bore, unless it's me being drawn, then it's just pure perfection."

"You're so conceited."

"Better than having no self-esteem."

"I wish you had none!"

Jacob laughed. "But then I wouldn't be the Jacob Winchester you love so much!"

Lily snorted. "Yeah, right."

"We should just do music. I know you love Muggle music just as much as Wizard music, so it's a perfect mix," Jacob said. Lily gritted her teeth because she couldn't say anything in response to that; it was actually a good idea. "We could play two songs and show the differences between them. I can learn them on my guitar and we could both sing them. We could do a song from that one Muggle band…Marianas Trench I think it's called -"

"Oh, don't even, Winchester," Lily scoffed. "You're just saying them because you know they're one of my favourites."

Jacob looked shocked. "Are they, now? Well, what a coincidence, because they just so happen to be one of my favourites as well! Wow, we have quite a bit in common, don't we, Potter?"

Despite herself, Lily laughed slightly. "You're such a fool, Winchester."

Jacob grinned.

When Lily found herself smiling back at him, she quickly shook her head and noted down what their project was going to be about. "By the way, Winchester, you have thought about what I said to you yesterday, right? About leaving Will alone?"

Jacob's smile faltered but he nodded. "I have, but the whole fight wasn't even my fault, you know. He attacked _me_."

"You were saying things that you knew would get to him," Lily defended. "Oh, and I didn't reject him. I fully intend to spend the whole night of the ball with him, so I would appreciate it if you kept your distance for once."

"Can't promise anything, Potter."

Lily sighed. "Thought so. Okay then, you've forced me. We have to get some things straight. I hate to break it to you, Winchester, but you'll never have a chance with me. You ruined that in second year when you started acting like a git to me. I only put up with you because of Quidditch because you're a damn good Chaser and that's the only compliment you will ever get from me. Even if you are that good though, attack or even try to get Will to attack you again, and it will be you I kick off the team and replace you with Roxy - you know how important family is to me -"

"Hand in your parchment with your project topics please!" Professor Flynn called as the bell rang. Professor Flynn was a small, thin woman with short white hair and gold everywhere: her robes, her jewelry, even her lipstick. "And to warn you, in spring term we will be reading the Muggle play, Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare!"

Lily shoved the parchment into Jacob's hands as Professor Flynn clapped her hands excitedly as others passed in their papers. Professor Flynn always became excited when she talked about Shakespeare.

" - Finally," Lily said, swinging her bag onto her back, "if I ever had to choose between you and Will - it would always, _always _be Will."

And she turned on her heel and stalked out of the classroom without looking back at him, Rosalie and Phoenix at her sides.

She could feel the looks they were exchanging behind her back.

**XxXxX**

After lunch, Lily linked her arm through Aiden's and they walked together to the Ancient Runes classroom. Taking their seats in the center of the room, they waited for the rest of the relatively small class to file in. Lily was unsurprised when Darren Clowes took the empty seat next to Aiden. Lily had often seen the boys talking with each other, but most often it had been Darren and Jacob.

Professor McKnight began the class by handing back all the translations they had done since the beginning of the year. When he reached Lily and Aiden, he smiled in amusement, his light brown eyes warm. He tapped the parchments on the top of their piles. "It's best not to do translations when you're tired, you two."

Aiden picked up his parchment and examined it. A rather large 'P' was scrawled at the top. It was better than Lily's though, for a bright red 'D' was overpowering the spot where her name was.

"What did we do wrong?" Aiden asked.

Professor McKnight laughed and ran a hand over his short brown hair. "Well, if you look at Mr Clowes parchment, the translation was about Ancient Egyptian wizards. The beginning of your papers were good, but near the end you started going way off topic."

"Where?" Lily examined her paper.

Professor McKnight pointed to the very last sentence. "'_And the cat pounced over the moon to attack the singing banana.' _Well, you got the word _cat_ right, but the singing banana? You finished writing this translation the morning that all the fruit were charmed to sing, didn't you?"

Lily nodded. "Hmmm…guess I didn't really pay attention to what I was writing."

"Try again and I'll improve your grade," Professor McKnight told her, "If you do better on it though."

As Professor McKnight walked away, Lily looked over at Darren's translation. As usual, he had received an 'O' in bright red, like Lily's, by his name.

"How the bloody hell do you always get such good grades?" Lily asked. "It took us at least three hours to translate this rubbish and we did horrible on it!"

Darren pushed his parchment into his bag. "I study during the summer as well, so recognizing the runes come as second nature to me. Why do you look so surprised?"

"You study…during the summer?" Lily asked. She grabbed Aiden's wrist. "Please tell me you don't study during the summer too! How do you boys live? Studying in summer! You're supposed to play Quidditch and sleep in till noon and party all day in the summer!"

Aiden smiled at Lily's shock. "Well, Dad encourages me to, but Mum is another story. She uses the summers for family bonding -" Aiden rolled his eyes, "- which means that there's not a lot of time for homework. I think she just doesn't want me to study because she doesn't understand a thing that's in my books, being a Muggle and all."

"Family bonding?" Darren sounded interested. "My family doesn't willing like to spend time together, as you can probably tell with the way me and my sister are so estranged to each other."

"Family bonding can be annoying," Aiden said, looking as if he was trying to reassure Darren, "spending all day with my younger siblings and parents. It can easily get on your nerves."

Darren did not look as if the information was so unappealing to him. Aiden was noticing as well, for he turned back to his translation and stuffed it away in his bag. "Don't worry about it, Darren. Not many families are into the whole 'bonding' thing. It's just my mother that's so insistent about it. Does your family bond often, Lily?"

"Never," Lily said quickly. It was an obvious lie. Her family had outings all the time, which normally ended up being written about in the _Daily Prophet_. It seemed that no one ever bored of reading about Harry Potter's family. She flipped open _Advanced Rune Translation _and pointed to one of the random runes on the page. "So, do you think you could help me with all of this, Darren? I don't want my grade to drop below the 'O' I'm getting. My schedule is so filled this year that I just can't seem to understand runes anymore. It was so much easier last year."

Aiden nudged Lily with his shoulder. "Maybe you should have dropped Creatures then, don't you think? Or Muggle Studies? They're not exactly going to help you be an Auror."

Lily punched his arm. "Shut up! And you never know! They could help and then I would regret dropping the subject. Who knows what I could come across on a mission as an Auror! There could be a dragon, or a - a nundu! Can you imagine coming across a nundu? I wouldn't come out alive. And - and Muggle Studies is a fun class! I like reading all those Muggle books that Professor Flynn suggest to us!"

"I'm only taking Muggle Studies and Ancient Runes as extra classes," Aiden told her. "And Darren's got Creatures and Ancient Runes too. Two classes each. And there you are with three. How do you handle it?"

"Aunt Hermione."

"Of course," Aiden laughed.

Darren glanced amusedly between the two of them. "So, do you want help, Lily? 'Cause I would be glad to. It would give me a reason to get out of the Slytherin common room sometimes."

"That'd be great."

Professor McKnight cleared his throat from the front of the room. Lily, Aiden and Darren all turned towards the front as he smiled warmly at them. "Now that you three seem to have finally joined us, let's begin the lesson. Turn to page one hundred and four and copy down the first five runes that catch your eye. When you have your runes, make a sentence with them."

Lily groaned but obediently opened her book and proceeded to get lost in the maze that was Ancient Runes.

When the bell rang, Lily was practically hanging off of Aiden's arm as they left the classroom. She and Darren had planned their first Ancient Runes tutor session for next week in the library, and Aiden said that he would most likely be joining them.

"'_Pick out five runes and create a sentence._' Yeah, he says it so casually! It took me all class to come up with a word to put between the _dagaz_ and the _laguz_ runes! That's bloody 'day' and 'lake'! Why is it so hard to come up with a sentence about day and a lake!" Lily exclaimed, pulling Aiden's arm so that he was stooped down to one side. "_I don't get it!_"

"That's because Ancient Runes is a waste of time."

Lily spun around. She dropped Aiden's arm so she could cross her arms over her chest, her bag banging her hip from her turn.

Aiden shifted where he stood. Aiden was kind to everyone, Lily knew, but when someone hurt one of his friends, Aiden could hold a spectacular grudge that only consisted of steady, unnerving looks and subtle hexes if he was truly pissed.

"I'll see you in Transfiguration," she said to him and Darren.

Darren nodded and began walking, stopping only to place his hand on Aiden's shoulder and help steer him away.

"Aiden Forbes doesn't seem to happy with me," Will said awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck.

"He doesn't like it when his friends are hurt," Lily answered, pulling her hair out of the ponytail she had it in. She ran a hand through her hair to shake out the messy locks. "What do you want, Will?"

"To apologize," he said, stepping towards her. "I was stupid, I shouldn't have reacted to his taunts like that on the pitch. I made the team - and you - look bad. But it's one of Winchester's skills. He knows how to get under people's skin, surely you can understand that. I'm really sorry, Lily."

Lily nodded, but her lips were pressed into a tight line. "I do understand, but it's not me you should be apologizing to."

Will's eyes widened. "You want me to apologize to Winchester? Come on, Lily, you know that -"

"I know he's a git," Lily interrupted. "But I expected you to be the bigger man."

"Lily -"

"I have to get to Transfiguration."

And she left.

**XxXxX**

In Transfiguration, the class was supposed to be conjuring wax replicas of their partner out of thin air. Hugo had so far been able to conjure the head of Katrina, which rolled on the floor, but it was more than anyone else had been able to do.

Lily wasn't focused on the spell they were supposed to be practicing; she let Phoenix attempt to replicate her. Instead, her mind was back in the hallway with Will, when she had walked away from him without a word. Once again, she was confused with the way she acted with him. Why hadn't she just forgiven him? She had forgiven Jacob, even though he didn't say the words to her, but he had also had, like always, ruined the chances of them having a civil conversation. But wait, no, it had been _her_ that ended their conversation and brought up the fight...what? No, she wasn't defending Jacob from her own mind!

_Whatever_, she thought, lifting her wand to replicate Phoenix, _I'll just tell Will tonight to not even bother with Winchester. It's not his fault that Winchester loves to bug me and everyone I ever actually have a chance with. What a git._

"Hey, Potter!"

Lily glanced over her shoulder after her spell misfired and hit Hugo in the butt. Professor Lamia glared at Lily as he Vanished the smoking replica of Hugo's buttocks.

Delta Savage was brushing off the shoulder of the exact replica of Kaelan she had made, while the real Kaelan smirked by her side. Hiro, Lyra and Willow all hovered near them, making it seem as if they were still practicing the spell but were actually listening to what was happening.

Lily gritted her teeth and turned back to Phoenix who was muttering, "Ignore them. Ignore them. Ignore them." over and over again. Lily wasn't sure if Phoenix was talking to her or herself. It was hard to ignore the Slytherins though as they continued to whisper her name continuously. Their whispers were loud enough for the whole class to hear, but Professor Lamia remained unknowing as he told off a Hufflepuff girl.

Lily looked at them again, shaking off Phoenix's hand when she grabbed her wrist.

"What?" she snapped.

"I heard what happened at your last Quidditch practice," Delta sneered. "Embarrassing. Thank God I don't have to play against you this year. It would do nothing for my reputation if I said that I beat the Gryffindor team. Finally become captain and you manage to screw up your team. Gryffindor House must be seriously disappointed."

"It's none of your business what happens at my practices, Savage."

Phoenix pulled Lily towards her as all the Slytherins grinned wickedly, though Darren tried to stop Jacob as he stepped towards Delta.

"What do you mean you're not playing against us?" he asked, his wand clenched in his hand by his side.

"Exactly what I said," Delta told him. "Hiro, Kaelan and I have dropped Quidditch for...reasons that you need not to know of." She twirled a piece of blonde hair around her finger. "Let's just say that we have more_ important_ issues to attend to."

"Watch it, Del," Kaelan said lowly to her, his gaze trained on Jacob, but a smirk still in place on his lips. "Potter's guard doggy is getting angry."

"Kaelan," Darren said warningly.

"Oh, will you shut up already!" Phoenix suddenly snapped, letting go of Lily's arm and moving towards the Slytherins, stopping a foot away from Delta. "You're pathetic, you know! You're just trying to get us to ask what the hell you are up to but you don't seem to understand that no ones gives a shit about you, Savage, or any of your Slytherin cronies. Once again, you're just trying to make yourself seem interesting because you know you're not."

Delta looked as if the words did not even affect her. "Poor Phoenix, you feel just as rejected as poor Willard Schell, don't you? Doesn't matter anyway what you think though, does it? 'Cause even if you asked, I would never tell you," Delta said in a voice so superior voice that Lily was tempted to hex the blonde.

Though Lily was able to control herself, this seemed to be the last straw for Phoenix. In a second, her wand was pointed at Delta and she yelled, "_Furninculus!_"

Delta staggered back at the force of the spell, her face twisting. Lily could see huge, ugly boils beginning to cover Delta's hands and disappearing up into the arms of her robes and appear again on the lower part of her neck. Rosalie, Jacob and Hunter cheered madly at the same time that Kaelan and Hiro roared angrily and Lyra hurried to Delta's side. Willow hovered by the Ravenclaw girl she was paired with, but Lily saw the single, steady look that Darren shot at her and Willow remained where she was. The commotion finally caught Professor Lamia's attention. He grabbed onto Phoenix's wrist and wrenched Phoenix's wand from her hand. "Malfoy, escort Ms Savage to the hospital wing. You -" He glared darkly at Phoenix, whose lips were pressed together tightly, looking as if she was in pain from his hold on her wrist.

"You're hurting her!" Alice shrieked, clapping her hands over her mouth as Professor Lamia's heterochromatic eyes turned to her.

Louis was quick to move close to Alice when Professor Lamia's hand twitched, Phoenix's wand held in his fist.

He dropped Phoenix's wrist. "You are done for the rest of this class. Sit at your desk and remain there after the bell. We will need to discuss what you will do for your detentions."

Phoenix did not reply, but only returned his glare before she turned her back on him and sat down at her desk, folding her arms across her chest.

Lily and Rosalie waited by the door for Phoenix when class ended. They weren't able to miss the way Darren had lagged behind as well, slowly putting his books inside his bag as Professor Lamia approached Phoenix's desk and began speaking quietly with her. The pleased look on his face made Lily want to hex him more than she wanted to hex Delta or Kaelan. It was common knowledge that Professor Lamia hated everyone, students and teachers, but he seemed to hold a special hate for Lily and her fellow sixth year Gryffindors. Darren swung his bag onto his shoulder when Professor Lamia handed Phoenix her wand and met up with Rosalie and Lily at the door.

"If I was Phoenix," he said, "I would've hexed Kaelan as well. He goes too far sometimes."

Lily didn't miss the look he gave her.

"I know," Lily muttered, thinking back to the day in September when Kaelan and Hiro had approached her before Potions. She still wondered what he would have done to her if Delta and Lyra had not appeared, for the look on his face had been pure, unmasked want.

Phoenix found them by the door when she stormed away from Professor Lamia. She stopped in her tracks as she saw Darren there as well. "Uh...hi," she said, surprised.

"Do you have to do something horrible for detention?" Darren asked.

Phoenix sighed. "I have to clean all the portrait frames on the first floor, everyday after nine o'clock. It's going to take me about all week because I'm not allowed to use magic."

Darren smiled and when he did, Rosalie nudged Lily in the side and pointed to Phoenix. Phoenix's cheeks turned slightly red.

"Don't even worry about it," Darren said to her. "Professor Lamia is a hardheaded git. And the hex you used on Delta was brilliant. But, I'm going to go get some dinner, I'll see you later."

Rosalie rounded on Phoenix as soon as Darren was out of sight. "You might not lose this bet after all! You still have like four months and Louis is only on his fourth girl I think it is."

"It should be easy from here on," Phoenix said and grinned.

"Plus," Lily added, "he has a really cute smile."

"Hey! This is my bet!"

**XxXxX**

**I love Darren and Aiden, just gotta say that :P**

**Review please!  
**


	14. Surprising Anger

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, but...actually, there's no but here. I just don't own it.**

**The Fanfiction website has been hating me lately :(**

**XxXxX  
**

"Payne!" Lily exclaimed, tossing down her quill. "Where the hell is your friend?"

Hunter glanced up from his posing for Rosalie and shook his head. Rosalie was bouncing around him with Lily's camera, used Polaroids flying everywhere. Lily was not pleased that all her pictures were being used on Hunter of all people and when Lily told Rosalie this, she had grinned at her and drifted across the room to where Will sat and took a picture of him before he even knew what had happened.

At the moment, Lily was waiting impatiently for Jacob to show up. They were supposed to be working on their project for Muggle Studies and they were also supposed to have started an hour ago. Phoenix had left the common room almost ten minutes ago to head to the detention that she said she was going to finish cleaning the frames of the first floor portraits.

Alex sat beside Lily, Blanca in his lap. Katrina was looking over his homework for him, crossing out sentences and handing it back so he could fix it. When he was not fixing his homework, Lily had him looking at her plays for Quidditch, which he did with much more enthusiasm then when he had his homework in hand.

All the others had already finished their Muggle Studies project which was due the next day and Lily and Jacob had barely started.

Lily plucked Blanca from Alex's lap and placed her on the ground. "Go find Winchester," Lily said to the cat. "Bring him here by tooth and claw."

Blanca stood still for a moment before she went slinking off, disappearing up the stairs to the boys dormitory. Lily always knew that when it came to finding Jacob, Blanca, even though she was a cat, was the one to go to. As much as she would hiss and scratch when he was near, she always knew where he was as if his scent was as noticeable as a skunk's.

Unsurprisingly, in a matter of minutes, Jacob came clattering down the boys' staircase, black guitar in hand and one leg kicking back at Blanca who was hissing madly at him.

"Bloody hell!" Jacob yelled. "Potter! Control this damn cat of yours!"

"Well, I wouldn't have set her on you in the first place if you just showed up at the time we had planned! If I'm up past eleven then I'm going to be pissed off in the morning, Winchester!"

Jacob dropped down on the couch on the other side of Alex. "I was working on our project!" he said. "I've got the Muggle song ready."

"We could have worked on it - wait, you got _half _of the project done on your own?" Lily asked incredulously. "Why?"

"Because I'm the only one of us that can play the guitar," he said as if she was stupid.

Lily flushed angrily and rolled up one of her Quidditch plays to wallop him on the head with. "Don't get smart with me, Winchester. If you've got it done, then let's hear it and I'll determine if it's good enough."

"No faith in me, Potter."

"None at all," she said. "Just play."

Alex shifted in his seat closer to Lily as Jacob turned in his spot so he faced Lily and Alex, one leg underneath him and his guitar on his thigh. Jacob laughed when Rosalie stopped to take a picture of him, then bounced off again to snap a picture of Hugo and Aiden playing Wizards Chess. Louis sat across the common room from all of them, arms around some brunette fourth year while Alice scowled at him disapprovingly - Louis grinned back at her cockily.

When Jacob began to play, most of the common room fell silent to listen. When Jacob played his guitar, it was one of the few times Lily would bear to come in close contact with him, because it was one of the few times he was so focused on something else other than her. But when he began playing the song, Lily couldn't recognize it as any from her favourite Muggle bands.

It was only when he began to sing that Lily's mind suddenly clicked. It sounded so different but so much like the original that Lily had to wonder how long he had been working on this version and why he had worked so hard. Lily couldn't deny that Jacob was a professional at playing the guitar and he had an amazing voice, based on what she was hearing and how most other girls were inching their way towards him, oblivious to the resentful eyes of the other boys in the common room.

Lily lifted her gaze from the sleek black of the guitar up to Jacob's face to have her eyes caught with his. Those sapphire eyes of his were warm, amused and playful, but there was a trace of tiredness behind them.

_And I know where I go, I'm coming back to you_

_Be where I oughta be, where I oughta be_

_Take me with you, I start to miss you_

_Take me home I don't wanna be alone tonight_

Lily's breath suddenly caught when Jacob grinned at her, his face pale but still handsome. Alex glanced up at her curiously, but Lily ignored him, choosing instead to fight down the flush that was working its way up her neck. The flush was so different from her earlier one, and she was sure that she would rather have the other one than this one.

She was_ sure of it_…

_And I do want to show you, I_

_Will run to you, to you, till I_

_Can't stand on my own anymore, I_

_Cross my heart and hope to die_

When Jacob's guitar playing became softer, Lily looked away from him, first to where Rosalie was standing near them, shaking a handful of Polaroids in her hand and grinning at the pictures that appeared, and then over to where Will sat, his turquoise eyes burning into side of her head. When her eyes met his, he forced a smile onto his face and nodded to Jacob.

Last week, after Lily had spoken to Will in the corridor outside the Ancient Runes room, the next night, Will had apologized to Jacob in front of the entire common room. Jacob had been bewildered, until Will walked away and sat down on the arm of Lily's chair.

Lily's focus was brought back to Jacob when he _accidentally_ hit her lightly on her shin with his foot. Alex chuckled, but attempted to cover up the sound when Lily glanced down at him. Looking back at Jacob, Lily saw that the smile was now gone, replaced instead by his usual smirk. The smirk had a wave of annoyance crashing over Lily. She abruptly grabbed onto the neck of Jacob's guitar, stopping his playing.

"We'll use it," she said, picking a stray piece of parchment from her bag at her feet. "And I already decided on some Wizard songs we could use. We just need to narrow the list down a bit."

"That's it?" Jacob asked. "All I get is a 'We'll use it'? I'm injured, Potter!"

Lily rolled her eyes. "It was good. That what you want?"

"Well, I would love some fawning and fainting, but it'll do. Coming from you, any compliment is just as good."

"You are such a prat."

Alex was glancing between them quickly, his head snapping back and forth until he finally slid out from in between them and ventured over to where Hugo had crushed Aiden horribly in Wizards Chess.

They worked on their Muggle Studies project for another two hours, until the common room was empty of every Gryffindor except for them. Phoenix had ventured in at half past ten, grinning broadly, but she said nothing as she ascended the stairs to the girls dormitory. The clock chimed eleven o'clock and Lily didn't even glance up from the parchment she was writing on as she said to Jacob, "Great, this gives me a reason to be angry with you tomorrow."

Jacob strummed a sour note on his guitar that had Lily cringing.

"Do you really ever need a reason to be angry with me?" he asked tiredly.

"Yes," she said. "I don't ever become annoyed or pissed at you for no reason. It's always from something you said. Normally it's something stupid, immature or just plain crude. Every girl wouldn't be able to stand you if it wasn't for the fact that they don't listen to a word you say - all they care about is having your eyes focused on them in a crowd of other people so they can brag."

"Do you like that my eyes are on you most of the time?"

Lily cocked her head at him, giving a look that clearly said what-do-you-think?

Jacob smiled and leaned back against the arm of the couch, his legs stretched out and almost touching Lily's legs at the other end of the couch. They probably would have been if she hadn't jabbed him in his thigh with her quill half an hour ago for having just his feet touching her.

Lily yawned widely.

"You should go to bed, Lily," Jacob said lowly, his voice gentle.

Lily turned to him sharply. She was not use to the tender, gentle tone his voice had, but it wasn't the first time she had heard it. He often used it with Sophie, for she was the most fragile girl possible, but she had yet to hear it used towards her.

Jacob shook his head at her look. "I'm just suggesting that you should. It's late, you're tired and you already know all the lyrics to that song, considering you love that band. Plus," he grinned suddenly, excited but tired. "Professor Rosewood is bringing that Dementor into class tomorrow so we can see how well our Patronus' fare."

Lily huffed because she knew he was right; she didn't want to end up in front of a Dementor, tired and unable to think a happy thought, so she was stuck with nothing. Defenceless. Lily hated being defenceless.

"Alright, I'm going," she said, stuffing all the notes away in her bag and standing up. "You going too?"

"I'm going to practice for a bit longer," Jacob said, hitching his guitar into his lap again. Lily shrugged and turned away. She felt his eyes follow her until she disappeared up the staircase to the girls dormitory. And she did not enjoy it...she _didn't._

**XxXxX**

Lily woke gasping in the middle of the night, a sudden anger filling her. She felt angry at someone, frustrated, annoyed. Rosalie crouched at her bedside, her hand still on Lily's arm, and Lily felt the urge to strike out at her, just to get ride of some of the pent up aggression in her. But Lily fought back the desire and instead clutched her bed sheets, trying to concentrate.

"Another dream?" Rosalie asked softly.

"You woke me up," Lily said, irritated. "You should know."

"Going to ignore the fact that you're pissed off at me for no reason," Rosalie said, standing up. "So do you remember what -"

Rosalie's sentence was cut off by a howl coming through the open window. Lily was up out of bed quickly and over to the window in a second, clutching the ledge as she leaned out slightly.

The grounds of the school were lit silver from the light of the full moon and Lily wondered where the sound had come from, until she saw something move over by the Forbidden Forest. Two circles of orange light were waving around madly, lighting up the trees at the edge of the Forest. Two black figures were holding the lanterns, shouting and cursing at the trees of the Forest. Lily recognized one of the figures as Hagrid, tall and huge, his shaggy mess of hair unmistakable in the light from the lanterns. The other figure had to be Professor Scarta then, for those two were normally seen in each others company. The broad shoulders were also a dead giveaway of who he was.

Something moved within the trees. Something huge and as black as the darkness behind it, but the light from one of the lanterns passed over it, and two glowing eyes flashed before the light moved again. Now that her eyes were adjusting, Lily could vaguely see the thing that was just behind the trees at the edge of the forest, pacing back and forth, trying to find a away through Professor Scarta and Hagrid. It growled and reared back, slashing at the tree it just passed. Professor Scarta jumped back and a flash of red light hit the tree just over the thing's head. Hagrid gave a shout and wrenched the wand from Professor Scarta's hands, but the thing fled as soon as Professor Scarta had attempted to curse it, disappearing within the trees and blackness of the forest.

Lily felt the weight of Rosalie leaning against her back, looking over her head at whatever it was that they had just seen.

"Did you see that?" Lily asked, pushing Rosalie back and pulling the window closed, blocking out the cold October air. Hagrid and Professor Scarta were stepping away from the Forest now, moving to sit in two chairs that were set up beside Hagrid's hut, a table between them on which they deposited their lanterns, the light revealing two mugs, one normal size and the other bucket size, from which steam was floating out of.

"See what?" Rosalie said. "Your head was in the way so I missed whatever it was. All I saw was Hagrid and Professor Scarta jumping around like fools."

"You're taller than me!"

"Yeah, but your head was directly where the thing was! What was it anyways?"

"I don't know. Huge was all I could really tell."

"Maybe it was a centaur…or a -"

Phoenix's groan came from the darkness of their room. She pushed aside the hangings around her bed and looked bleary eyed out at them. "It is three in the morning!" she snapped. "Can you not wait until _breakfast _to discuss whatever is _so _important?"

And she disappeared back behind her hangings.

"Well, _someone's _grumpy in the morning," Rosalie said.

Phoenix moaned something unintelligibly, but either way it sounded rude.

**XxXxX**

**Dun dun DUNNNNNN!**

**So what was it? What is in the Forest? Who knows!**

**Anyways, if you want to know what Jacob's version of the song Cross My Heart sounded like, I have a link on my profile. **

**Review please!  
**


	15. The Dementor Lesson

The next morning, Lily waited for the rest of the girls to wake before she climbed out of bed. She had not been able to get to sleep for the rest of that night. Her anger and frustration filled her all through the night until dawn, which was surprising, for she felt no reason for either of them. As well, she also had just wanted to jump out of her bed and run. Run through the corridors, run around the grounds, run through the forest. She had just been so restless. All the mingled and confused feelings had stopped though as soon as the sun peeked over the hills in the distance. But her wrist continued to ache, a pain that had started an hour after she had woken up.

Lily was so confused.

Rosalie seemed to have forgotten about what happened last night. She was listening raptly to Phoenix as they pulled on their robes, the black-haired witch telling the blond about how Darren Clowes had appeared a little after her detention had began and stayed with her the entire time, ducking into classrooms and around corners whenever a teacher passed by. It explained to Lily why Phoenix had been in such a good mood when she had entered the common room last night.

Lily was extremely tired all through breakfast, drinking coffee after coffee. She was not looking forwards to the day either. She had Ancient Runes first thing, and she had yet to hand in the retranslated homework she had gotten a 'D' on. After, she had Muggle Studies, in which they would present their projects to the class. Then, after lunch it was double Defence Against the Dark Arts, which was sure to deplete her energy, for there would be a Dementor. And last was Care of Magical Creatures. But she also had her Ancient Runes study session with Darren before dinner, and Quidditch practice after.

She was definitely not going to make it through the day.

The day dragged on slowly. In Ancient Runes, Lily had ducked down in her seat the whole class to avoid Professor McKnight noticing her. He did see her though, and told her that he had given her enough time and if she didn't hand it in by the next day, she would get a detention. She let out an annoyed breath that she sucked back in an held for half of Muggle Studies. Jacob had not been there for most of the class, and when Lily was called upon, she had to explain that she didn't know where Jacob was. However, Jacob had flown through the doors ten minutes before class was going to end, his guitar in one hand and bag in the other. He had looked awful - more tired than the night before - with bandages around his right wrist. His fingers had also seemed tender, for he grimaced when he played his guitar and sang. Lily noticed after they sat down again that there was blood underneath his fingernails.

When Defence Against the Dark Arts came, Lily was so hopped up on coffee and sugar that she was practically vibrating on the spot. Thoughts were flashing through her mind. She was trying to focus on one happy thought, but she had so many thoughts and memories that it was hard to pick just _one_.

Professor Rosewood stepped into the corridor where they were lined up and closed the door behind her. She looked quite pale, but pleased nonetheless.

"I've got the Dementor in there," she told them. "There are also two wizards from the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures here to help if the Dementor gets out of hand. So, what will happen is that you will be separated into groups of three. When you're group is called, you will step forward and the Dementor will be released. As soon as Dementor is let out, you _must_ cast the spell. The better the spell is cast, the higher the mark you will receive. A silver shield will be worth more than a little wisp, and a corporeal Patronus will be full marks. We've been practicing for almost two months now; we've had practice casting the spell in class. I must warn you though, this will be much harder, for the real thing will be in front of you and you'll feel as if there's no chance of happiness."

Professor Rosewood grinned at some of the terrified looks that filled the class now and waved her arm towards the door. "Now, you may enter, but brace yourselves."

Hunter, always one to step up to a challenge and prove himself, was one of the first ones to step forwards, followed by Jacob, then Lily, all but bouncing as she moved, and then the rest of the class.

In the room, the curtains were closed over the windows and torches were lit on the walls. It was cold and once Lily's eyes had adjusted to the shortage of light, she could see that the two Ministry workers wore jumpers beneath their robes. All the desks were moved out of the way and against the wall, while a large cupboard stood where Professor Rosewood's desk normally was. The cupboard tipped heavily from side to side, teetering on two of the short legs before it tipped back the other way and did the same on the other side.

Most of the faces in the room had turned white, more than half now looking as if they wanted to flee the room. Lily felt the urge to run too, but she was also excited, facing a Dementor like her father did, and she was three years older than he was when he saw his first one. She wondered, perhaps, if her Patronus would resemble his, for Lily loved and thought highly of him as he had done for his father. But then, she also might have had the luck of having a Patronus that resembled her Grandma Lily's: a doe.

Lily felt Alice suddenly grab onto her elbow, and looked over at her to see the girl looking as if she were about to faint. Though, compared to Delta Savage and the other Slytherins, Alice looked as fine as could be when one was facing a Dementor. Delta was leaning against Kaelan, her eyes already slipping shut while Willow Clowes was clutching Darren's hand. Lily was surprised by how he was openly reassuring her, the hand she was not holding rubbing her shoulder comfortingly.

A Ravenclaw girl had already passed out.

Professor Rosewood was prepared though. "Thought this might happen," she said, handing a small phial to the girl next to her. "Here, give her this, it will wake her up and give her a bit more energy."

When the Ravenclaw was standing again, Professor Rosewood moved to the front of the room. "Now, before we begin and you cast your Patronus Charms, you must all have a happy thought. Bring it to the front of your mind so it is the one thing you're thinking of as you cast the spell. Use the happiest thought you have - a memory of a perfect day, a person you love, something you truly desire. Now, a Patronus does not always reflect the form of a person's Animagus form. It is undetermined of what the differences is between them, but it is believed that the Animagus is a reflection of who you are, an animal that represents you, while the Patronus will become the form of what protects you - what will give you strength. I see this explanation as more believable than most, for it is indeed what a Patronus is doing - protecting you."

Lily tried to think of what her Patronus and Animagus forms would be. Would they be the same? Different? She could imagine her Animagus form being something like a fox or a panther, but then her Patronus…what gave her strength? Well, her family did of course, but what could reflect that as a corporeal Patronus?

"Alright!" Professor Rosewood exclaimed, catching Lily off guard. "Does everyone have their memory? First group forward!" She pulled a scroll of parchment from the pocket of her red robes and consulted it. "Martin Adkins, Lucas Aguirre and Elisha Blackwell!"

The Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Slytherin stumbled forwards, looking scared at being called upon first. The two Ministry workers drew their wands from their robes and suddenly, the room was filled with silver light as they conjured their Patronus': a shark that circled around the one wizard's body as if it was swimming in water, and a badger that waited by the other wizard's feet. Professor Rosewood waved her own wand, and a large, silver bear appeared beside her, standing up on its hind legs and sniffing at the cupboard.

"Are you ready?" she asked the three students that stood before her.

They all nodded hesitantly. Professor Rosewood moved away from the cupboard, her bear Patronus following and flicked her wand at the doorknob of the cupboard.

Lily clutched Alice tightly as the blond slumped against her, only half conscious with her eyes fluttering.

The cold in the room was suddenly unbearable, and the torches blew out, leaving the room in complete darkness other than the silver light coming from the Patronus' of the three adults. Someone screamed. Through the darkness, Lily could see something moving. The silver Patronus light flickered over a dark, ratty cloak that was draped over something huge. Something that was almost ten feet tall. Something that was floating above the ground. The Dementor was breathing in and out slowly, its breaths long and shaky, like an old, unhealthy man's.

It began to glide forwards, the arm of its cloak lifting and a long, scabby grey hand emerging from within. The entire class was frozen, clutching each other and the wall. There were a few thuds from around the room as students collapsed.

Lily felt the cold settle within her chest and she felt as if she would be carrying it around forever, never again to feel any warmth or happiness. Her eyes were growing heavy, tears beginning to prick at her eyes, a lump rising in her throat. She wanted to cry, to curl up in the corner like that Hufflepuff girl over there was doing, she wanted to hide and never be found…

A warm hand touched the back of her neck. The touch was soft, and she felt her neck begin to sear with heat the longer the hand stayed. It was enough to bring her back to a state of consciousness. Her vision cleared from the black that had begun to seep in from the edges and she was able to see what was happening.

The three students that were supposed to be conjuring their Patronus' were failing miserably. Feeble wisps of silver were emitting from the wand of the Hufflepuff, but the Ravenclaw boy had fallen back and was caught by two of the students behind him while the Slytherin girl didn't even lift her wand. She was transfixed, frozen in spot as the Dementor drew closer…

The shark Patronus suddenly surged forwards, its jaws open wide and snapping at the Dementor, driving it back inside the cupboard where the doors latched themselves shut. The cupboard resumed its shaking.

The torches flared to life again at the flick from Professor Rosewood's wand. "Did everyone bring chocolate today like I instructed? Good, eat some, it will help. Please bring forwards those that have fainted and feed them a bit of this potion."

Lily straightened Alice up, the girl wobbly on her feet, but now able to stand upright on her own. "Are you okay?" Lily asked her.

Alice shivered. "I wanted to sleep and never wake up," she said, wrapping her arms around herself. Lily pulled a bar of chocolate from the pocket of her robe and broke off a piece. She offered it to Alice, who wolfed it down. A little colour returned to her cheeks. Lily ate the chocolate herself, and felt it warm the rest of her body like the hand had done on her neck. The hand…

Lily twisted around, but the only ones standing behind her were two Ravenclaw girls that Lily knew for a fact did not like her. Beside them, was a slight Hufflepuff boy, Jason Higgs, the one Phoenix had almost shagged. His hands were too small to have been the hand on her neck.

"Lily?" Alice said.

Lily turned back to her friend, shaking her head. "I'm fine."

Professor Rosewood caught everyone's attention again. "That was probably a bit much," she said, ignoring the snort that came from the corner that held the Slytherins. "For those of you who want to wait until their turn before they have to experience that again, you may wait outside and I will call you in. The rest of you may remain inside if you wish. Martin, Lucas, Elisha, it was a good attempt, but if you would wait outside too. You will try again after every group has gone once so you may have a chance to gather yourselves and think of another happy memory that might work better."

More than half the class left the room. Lily handed Alice off to Katrina and Hugo as they left, Hugo looking worse than Katrina. She saw Aiden pat both Jacob and Hunter on the backs before he turned and left. Lily looked away pointedly and went to stand with Rosalie and Phoenix as Jacob looked at her and winked.

A surge of pride filled her though at the thought that six Gryffindors had stayed, while there was only one Hufflepuff, three Ravenclaws and four Slytherins left in the room. Delta smirked at Lily from her corner and Lily knew that Delta had only stayed because Lily had. It was a challenge now, to see who could last the longest. Kaelan stood silently behind her, arms crossed over his chest. It would have looked as if the Dementor hadn't effected him at all if it wasn't for the slight tremor in his shoulders. Darren and Willow had stayed as well, but it was clear that Willow wanted to leave.

"Okay," Professor Rosewood said, consulting her parchment again. "Phoenix Blair, Darren Clowes and Willow Clowes." She looked up and smiled when she saw that all three of them were still in the room. "Now you three, you must concentrate hard on that happy thought, or you will have nothing to protect you. Do you have it? Are you ready?"

At their nods, Professor Rosewood flicked her wand at the cupboard again. The torches extinguished and the cold was back. Lily was more prepared now, having experienced it once. She thought of as many happy things as she could and though it didn't keep away the cold, it kept her from feeling the despair like earlier. Instead, she was able to focus completely on what was happening before her.

Willow had only gotten a strand of silver to come out of the tip of her wand before she dropped. As soon as he saw his sister on the ground, Darren's own wand clattered to the ground as he hurried towards Willow. Phoenix was left standing alone, her wand held out before her and her mouth opening and closing but no sound escaping. The Dementor was moving towards her.

"Feens!" Rosalie suddenly exclaimed.

The yell shook Phoenix, but it was good for Phoenix's back stiffened and she began to say, "_Expecto - Expec…Expecto Patro - Expecto Patronum_!"

On the last shout, a silver shield the size of a dinner platter burst from her wand and made the Dementor stop for a moment. The Patronus grew in size as the Dementor stopped, to the size of a large, round mirror, then to a dining room table before it suddenly disappeared and Phoenix slumped to the ground.

This time, the badger ran forwards, circling around the Dementor and driving it back into the cupboard.

Lily and Rosalie hurried to Phoenix and pulled her to her feet. Rosalie broke off a bit of her chocolate and gave it to Phoenix.

"That was fantastic, Phoenix!" Professor Rosewood exclaimed, clapping her hands. "Better than I expected from anyone today! That was remarkable! But Darren, you can't just go dropping your wand when someone falls. What if it was only the two of you, and she fell and you dropped your wand? You'd be done for."

Darren looked only slightly ashamed as he lifted Willow to her feet. "I'll do better next time, Professor."

"I don't doubt that you will," Professor Rosewood said to him, smiling.

Darren and Willow both exited the room. Phoenix hesitated, but both Lily and Rosalie pushed her towards the door.

After Phoenix's attempt, no one else had fared much better. Lily felt her energy draining from her faster and faster with each time the Dementor was released from the cupboard. She debated whether or not she should leave, but was glad that she chose not to when Lyra Malfoy had entered the room in the same group as Alice and Camden Madden, a Ravenclaw boy. Alice, surprisingly, was able to produce a Patronus, smaller than the one Phoenix had done, but enough to hold the Dementor back, while Lyra had tried once to say the spell before she dropped to the ground with her arms over her head. The look Delta sent Lyra as she left the room again was one of complete disgust and annoyance. Lily grinned cheekily over at Delta.

After Alice, it was Lily's turn, along with Hunter and a Hufflepuff girl, Quinn Mercado. Lily thought of her happy memory, and only of her memory. She was concentrating so hard that she missed Professor Rosewood asking if they were ready. The cupboard doors opened again and the Dementor came flying out. Being this close to the Dementor was even worse. It was hard for her to remember her memory, for the cold was setting in, filling every inch of her body, and with the cold came the despair. Her memory was flashing in her mind, there one minute and gone the next. Next to her, Hunter and the Hufflepuff girl both had Patronus', Hunter's rather larger.

Teddy and Victoire's wedding flashed again in Lily's mind and she quickly grabbed hold of it, thinking only of that memory. She raised her wand, said the words, and gave a victorious laugh when the wisps of silver coming from her wand grew in size until her Patronus was rivalling even Hunter's. Though, now that she had produced the Patronus, she felt her energy slipping away from her faster, and the more her energy left then the faster her Patronus shrunk.

Professor Rosewood's bear Patronus surged forwards and drove the Dementor back into the cupboard. "The first group we've had for all to create a Patronus! That was outstanding! Congratulations the three of you, you may sit and rest now."

Lily grabbed Rosalie's hand as she passed by her.

"That was awesome, Lily," Rosalie whispered.

"I'm going into the hall," Lily told her. "Tell me after how everything goes in here. Especially with Savage. I hope she fails."

Lily heard Rosalie laughing as she slipped out the door and moved to sit with Aiden, Katrina, Hugo, Alice and Phoenix. Lily was not able to miss that Darren sat in the spot beside Phoenix with Aiden across from him. Lily dropped down heavily beside Katrina and leaned against her.

"That was awful," she groaned.

Katrina nodded. "I think my only problem was that I didn't have a happy enough memory, but I can't think of one that would be the best to use," She said thoughtfully.

"I need a better one too," Lily said, "but it's too hard to pick _just one_."

Students in the corridor got up and entered the classroom. There had to only be four or five groups left until they started all over again. Hugo entered the classroom in the final group, with Louis, Jacob and a Slytherin boy, Ryder Yates. Lily was almost asleep on Katrina's shoulder when a sudden shout from within the room made her jump and Katrina yelp in surprise. They were not the only ones though. The others in the corridor all stopped and turned to look at the door where Louis came rushing out with Hugo. They looked shocked, excited and amazed all in one and ignored all the looks from the rest of the class as they dropped down into the spots across from Lily and Katrina.

Lily was curious, for they did not even look tired after having face-to-face with the Dementor. "What happened?" she asked quickly. "Was that Professor Rosewood that shouted?"

"You should have seen it!" Louis exclaimed. He clapped his hand onto Hugo's shoulder and he nodded frantically, trying to demonstrate what had happened with his hands for the words weren't coming to him. The rest of the class all leaned closer as Ryder Yates exited the classroom and went to sit with the Slytherins, looking annoyed.

"What? What should we have seen? Come on, Lou!"

"Jacob!" he shouted. "Jacob produced a corporeal Patronus!"

"It was this huge thing!" Hugo explained, throwing his arms out wide to show the size and almost hitting Aiden in the nose. "It burst from his wand before any of the rest of us could even say the words and flew at the Dementor. The Dementor basically locked itself back inside the cupboard trying to get away from it. Then it turned and walked back over to Jake. He was definitely surprised - you should have seen his face. And he patted its head and then it just disappeared! Blimey," Hugo sighed, "it was amazing."

Jacob came out of the classroom then, eating a whole bar of chocolate, but there was colour in his skin that had been missing from most as they faced the Dementor. He had one hand in his pocket, casual, as if he had just returned from Hogsmeade. As soon as he stepped into the corridor, the other students all jumped up from their spots, crowding around him and talking so fast and loudly that Lily couldn't understand a word they were saying.

"You'll just have to stay in the classroom next time if you want to know what it is!" Jacob called over the crowd, laughing as he pushed his way through them. He threw his arms around Aiden and Hugo when he sat down between them. "Who'd have thought that the first time I see a Dementor I'd be able to make a corporeal Patronus? You know who did know though? I did!"

The others all laughed.

"What was your Patronus, Jacob?" Katrina asked, smiling widely.

Jacob shook his finger at her. "Ah, dear Katty, you'll have to see for yourself next time, won't you? Oh, Potter, what's the eye roll for?"

Lily sighed. "You're pleased with yourself, aren't you, Winchester? You're probably going to be bragging about this for weeks."

"I think I have reason to," he said to her with a bright grin. "Do you see anyone else with a corporeal Patronus? No! But, if _you_ ask, Potter, I might just tell you what my happy thought was."

Lily rolled her eyes again and crossed her arms over her chest. "No thanks. I'd rather be kept in the dark about that."

"Fine then, I'm sure you can figure out the gist of it anyways." He winked at her and Lily had to agree with him. The looks he was giving her made it obvious what his happy thought had been, and that thought made her stomach twist. "But you should have seen Professor Rosewood when my Patronus formed. She all but fainted -"

And he launched into an explanation of what had happened in the room, much more detailed then Hugo's had been, but still keeping quiet about what his Patronus's form had been.


	16. Blood and Claws

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

**Sorry this one is a little late, but I'm just having a hard time on the chapter I'm writing now. I will get it done though! **

**XxXxX**

Lily's nerves were on end as they headed down to Care of Magical Creatures after their Defence Against the Dark Arts class. They had all had one more chance to face the Dementor after their first try and Lily's second try had been terrible, for she had been annoyed with Jacob. He had been exempted from his second try by Professor Rosewood, who said that it took more energy to conjure a corporeal Patronus than it did for a formless Patronus. And with the special treatment, Jacob had been fawned over by the rest of the class, who wanted to hear more about his Patronus.

Professor Scarta met the class at the door of Hagrid's hut, looking tired but cheerful. Lily wondered if the thing that had kept him up the night before had returned sometime after she had returned to bed.

"Well, you all look tired," Professor Scarta said as a Hufflepuff girl yawned widely and leaned against her friend's side. The class for Care of Magical Creatures was much smaller than the Defence class had been. There was only three Hufflepuffs, Darren from Slytherin, two Ravenclaws and Jacob, Hunter, Louis and Lily. Lily felt completely abandoned by her friends whenever she went to a Creatures class.

Professor Scarta clapped his hands together loudly, making the class jump. "If that didn't wake you up, the creature we will be covering for the next week definitely will. Follow me, Hagrid has our creature tied up in the Forest."

The entire class was always wary whenever Professor Scarta said that they would be entering the Forest, and Lily even more today from what she had seen last night.

Lily also was not the only one to let out a small scream when they saw what Hagrid was holding back by a chain. Lily peeked around Louis's arm from where she had dove behind him, ignoring his laughter and the loud, rumbling laugh coming from Professor Scarta.

Hagrid yanked the chains back again but the Acromantula continued to struggle forwards, its eight eyes flicking between each student and its eight hairy legs digging into the ground to push itself forwards. It pincers snapped together excitedly, and clear venom dripped from its fangs, onto the leaf strewn Forest floor. The clicking sound from the pincers came faster and faster as Professor Scarta approached the black, hairy beast.

"Now, Acromantulas are normally capable of human speech, but this one here has been hidden in this Forest for too long and had never come across anything that spoke to it, so it was not able to pick up on our language -"

"Yeah, 'cause I want to hear a spider tell me that it's going to _eat me_!" Lily hissed to Louis.

"- In Acromantulas, the females tend to be larger than the males. Here we have a male, for as you can see, its legs are only about eight feet long, compared to those females that can reach up to fifteen feet."

The entire lesson Lily spent hiding behind Louis's body, flinching back whenever the Acromantula moved forwards an inch. Lily was not normally afraid of spiders, she could deal with any that were smaller than her fist, but if they became bigger than that, she would scream and run away. But now, facing one that was _bigger than her_, Lily felt that she was experiencing the same feelings as when she had faced the Dementor. She wanted to run and hide around that large tree there.

When the lesson ended, Lily was the first to reach the edge of the Forest. She waited for Hagrid, wanting to ask him some questions. Lily froze though, for when she looked up at the tree she was waiting by, she saw long claw marks marring the trunk, pieces of bark missing or hanging by little bits and blood dried around the edges of the marks. The scratches were huge, one almost as long as her arm. They dug so deep into the tree trunk that she could almost fit her finger inside the claw mark up to her second knuckle.

So this was where the thing had been last night. She could see it now, she could imagine Professor Scarta and Hagrid in front of her, waving their arms around with the light from their lanterns hitting the trees. Which meant…yes. She brushed away some of the leaves on the ground near the tree with the claw marks and was able to see footprints in the ground, but whatever the thing was had paced too much in the same spot and the prints all melded together into a shapeless imprint in the dirt.

"Lily? What are yeh doin'?"

Lily stood up quickly, cracking her head against one of the low branches of the tree. Groaning, she rubbed the sore spot on her head and turned to look at Hagrid. Hagrid was as large as ever, his wild tangle of hair and his beard a greyish-silver colour and wrinkles surrounding his warm, dark eyes. When Lily hit her head, Hagrid gave an amused wince. "That sounded like it hur'."

Lily felt the bump growing in the exact same spot that she had the bump at the beginning of the year. "Yeah, it did. Got some ice, Hagrid? And a cup of tea?"

"Gladly, Lily," he said, clapping one of his dustbin sized hands down onto her shoulder and making her knees buckle. He grabbed her by the back of her robes before she fell and hoisted her back up. "Yeh've barely visited me this year."

"Sorry," Lily said as they entered his hut. "It's been busy, what with Quidditch and all my classes. My days are so filled up that it's exhausting."

Hagrid wrapped some ice in a towel for her and handed it to her before he bustled over to the kettle that he had sitting over the fire. Filling it with water, he hung it just over the flames and sat down by Lily at the table he had in his hut. Lily noticed the large framed picture that hung over Hagrid's fireplace, so big that it reached from one end of the fireplace mantle to the other. Lily grinned at the occupants of the frame. Her family grinned out at her, waving brightly and looking as loving and welcoming as ever. She saw herself beside her father, clutching his one arm; she had to be twelve in that picture. Everywhere, she was surrounded by Weasleys, but there was Alice and her parents and brother; Luna with her husband and twin sons Lorcan and Lysander; Scorpius stood between Albus and Rose, his arms hooked around them; and Teddy was with Victoire - it was from just before they were married.

Hagrid turned to see what Lily was staring at. "I should change that one, but I'll wait til nex' years. Who knows, maybe the nex' one will have yeh and yer partner, Lily."

The family always took a picture at the end of every summer, for there seemed to be someone new to add each time. They would send Hagrid a copy of the photo as well, in which he would enlarge and place inside the frame above his fireplace. But Hagrid had not changed the photo in years and Lily was glad that he didn't as well. That had always been her favourite one out of all the pictures they had taken, before everything had become complicated - before her second year started and Jacob became just another prat.

"I don't have a partner, Hagrid," Lily laughed.

"Yeh never know what could happen later on, Lily."

The kettle began to whistle. Hagrid hurried out of his seat and returned with the kettle and two teacups, one bucket sized for himself. Distributing the tea between them, he also placed a tray of rock cakes on the table, which Lily politely refused. She had learned from Harry to, at any chance, avoid accepting Hagrid's cooking if she could.

"So how has the Quidditch bin goin'?"

"What happened last night?"

Lily asked her question at the same time that Hagrid did. She had been unable to stop the words, for she had been bursting to say something about what she had seen. Hagrid's mood changed in a second. His expression turned wary as he looked at Lily with his dark eyes and slowly placed his bucket of tea back down onto the table.

"What are yeh talkin' abou', Lily?" he asked slowly.

Lily stared down at her teacup. "I saw you and Professor Scarta last night. You were by the Forbidden Forest, and it looked like you were trying to keep _something _inside the Forest. I saw something move in the trees. Something huge. What was it?"

"Ah, Lily," Hagrid groaned. "Yer just like yer father. Nosy, the two of yeh are, an' it won' always do yeh good."

"But Hagrid -"

A knock came to the door then, cutting of Lily's sentence. Grumbling, Hagrid stood and moved towards the door, his shoulders stiffening when he opened it. Lily couldn't see who it was but she was able to recognize the deep, loud voice when they spoke.

"Hagrid -"

"What do yeh want, Emmet?" Hagrid said tightly.

Professor Scarta sighed. "Are you still angry about what happened last night, Hagrid?" he asked. "I just did what I _had_ to do!"

Lily leaned forwards in her seat as Hagrid lowered his voice.

"Yeh weren't s'posed ter try an' curse him!" Hagrid said, his giant fists clenching. "Yeh heard Professor McGonagall las' year. We're jus' ter keep him away from the school and in the Forest. We're s'posed ter _protect _the students!"

"I _was _protecting the students!" Professor Scarta replied angrily, not caring to keep his voice down for he didn't know that Lily was there. "By keeping him _in _the Forest! What was I supposed to do, Hagrid? Let him run me down and get into the school? You know that he would go straight for her if that happened and -"

"Keep yer voice down!" Hagrid shouted, waving his large hands.

Hagrid moved aside so Professor Scarta could see into his hut. Professor Scarta's eyes grew wide when he saw Lily sitting there. He quickly cleared his throat. "Yes, so Hagrid, I'll return later and we'll plan the rest of the lessons for the Acromantula."

"Course, Professor," Hagrid said and closed the door after Professor Scarta. "Don't ask, Lily," he said as he returned to his seat. "It's best if yeh don't know."

But Lily's mind was reeling as she returned up to the school for her study session with Darren. She met up with Aiden in the common room and the two grabbed their Ancient Runes work before heading to the library. In the library, they found the table that Darren was waiting for them at and sat down, pulling their homework out to work. Lily didn't pay attention to half of what Darren was telling them about Ancient Runes, however, but she caught enough to be able to retranslate her homework better than the first time and handed it over for Darren to look at.

There was obviously something in the Forest, Lily knew that much. She still wondered what it was though. Hagrid's and Professor Scarta's words only made her more confused, for while they spoke the same words - '_We're supposed ter _protect _the students!'_ - they said them with entirely different meanings. How was attacking the thing and not attacking the thing both to protect the students and not protecting the students? And just who was the girl that the thing was after?

"Lily, are you even paying attention?" Aiden asked.

Lily looked up to see the two boys staring at her. She shook her head. "No," she said truthfully. Both boys laughed slightly as Darren handed her back her translation.

**XxXxX**

Lily cut the Quidditch practice short that night, due to the fact that any second she would have fallen off her broom, asleep. The boys had all grumbled and complained, saying that the first Quidditch match against Slytherin was only three weeks away. Lily was done though. She snapped at them, giving the usual threat of kicking them off the team if they made one more complaint and stomped up the grounds to the school.

She wanted nothing more than to just climb into her bed up in her dormitory and stay there for the whole weekend. Her eyes were drooping as she and the team tramped their way up to the common room. She wasn't, however, totally oblivious to the relieved look on Jacob's face when she said practice was over, the exhausted slump to his shoulder, the rubbing of his wrist that was wrapped in bandages, or the way he kept picking blood out from under his fingernails.

**XxXxX**

**She's onto you Jacob...**

**Anyways, review please! They're always appreciated, and they make me write faster :)**


	17. The Happy Memory

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

**So, the chapter I'm writing still hates me. Just a little bit of writer's block, but it will pass, like it always does :)**

**XxXxX  
**

The weekend passed by in a haze. Lily stumbled her way to Defence Against the Dark Arts, lining up outside with everyone else. The cold that seemed to be oozing out of the room meant that Professor Rosewood had brought the Dementor back. Sophie Winchester passed by their class line up on the way to her own class with a few of her friends and Evan Levine. Lily was surprised to see the auburn-haired boy talking so animatedly to Sophie, who looked as if she were actually enjoying herself. Her surprise quickly turned to annoyance when Evan looked up, saw her, turned as red as her hair and began waving frantically. Sophie sighed exasperatedly as half the class sniggered. She grabbed his wrist and pulled his hand down, whispering something to him that had him staring at her for a minute before his green eyes lightened and he smiled as if he understood something complex.

Jacob laughed from somewhere in the line that Lily couldn't care to look. "You tell him, Soph! Show him who wears the pants!"

This time, more than half the class laughed and Evan turned more red than Lily had ever seen him. He quickly brushed off Sophie's hand and hurried away.

Professor Rosewood bustled out into the hall. "Who's ready to conjure some more Patronus'?" she asked excitedly, frowning when most of the class mumbled unenthusiastically. "Come on! You had a whole weekend to think of another memory. Let's try for a corporeal Patronus now. To give you all an example, I say that we start from the bottom of the list and move up, which means Jacob, Hugo, Louis and Ryder are up. All of the rest of you can remain in the hall if you want -"

But already the entire class was pushing their way around her and into the classroom, suddenly excited at the prospect of starting from the bottom of the list. Rosalie and Phoenix hooked their arms through Lily's and pulled her into the room. They didn't have to fight to get spots at the front of the class, for Rosalie smiled at the boys once and easily slipped all three of them into their newly vacated spot.

"Veela traits," Rosalie whispered to them when they reached the front. "Annoying but oh so useful."

Once Professor Rosewood closed the door of the classroom behind her, the room was again thrown into the darkness. The only light came from the shark, badger and bear Patronus' and the torches on the wall that would be blown out the second the Dementor came out of the cupboard.

"Let's see if you can conjure that Patronus again, Jacob," Professor Rosewood said, excited as the rest of the class.

The cupboard doors opened. The Dementor glided out, instantly setting the feeling of cold into everyone in the room, and the despair that came with it. Lily's shoulders drooped. She felt Rosalie and Phoenix sag as well, a sad sigh escaping Phoenix's lips. Lily's mind was only just able to concentrate on what was happening in front of her; Hugo, Louis, Jacob and the Slytherin all standing before the Dementor, wands raised and mouths moving. Their voices were distorted in Lily's ears, but the silver shields from Hugo, Louis and the Slytherin were bright, easing the cold slightly.

Lily, and the whole class, were jolted out of the depressing depths of their minds by the room warming quickly as silver shot out of Jacob's wand, twisting and spinning in midair to form the shape of a large lion that dove at the Dementor.

"A lion," Phoenix said in awe. "Oh! wow, it's gorgeous."

Lily couldn't deny the fact that the lion Patronus was beautiful. It was huge and glowed brilliantly, casting silver light on the walls that rippled like water. Wisps of silver and white jumped out of the Patronus at random, curling in the air elegantly. His body was completely of silver, while his wild mane was pure white, along with the glowing eyes that stared only at Jacob as he returned to him. He even walked elegantly, tossing his mane back and flicking his tail.

Jacob's look was pleased, smug, awed and proud all in one. With the look on his face, Lily could see why Jacob's Patronus was a lion.

The class was shocked into silence as Jacob greeted the lion with a hand delving into its mane. They moved out of the way for him as he made his way towards one of the walls and dropped down onto the cold ground, the lion remaining at his side and sitting proudly and protectively beside him like the bear was for Professor Rosewood. Hugo and Louis joined him, with Aiden and Hunter and the five Gryffindor boys gloried in the warmth that the Patronus offered.

"Next group!" Professor Rosewood called. "Come on! You've seen, you've been inspired, now let's see what form your own Patronus will take!"

Rosalie squeezed Lily's arm as she moved forwards along with a Ravenclaw and a Hufflepuff girl. Everyone seemed, as Professor Rosewood had said, inspired, for their Patronus were much larger than the last lesson. Isaiah Ratliff of Hufflepuff had actually managed to have his Patronus form a sort of misshapen version of a mink for a second, before he lost his concentration due to surprise at the corporeal Patronus.

"Lily, Hunter, Quinn! You're up!" Professor Rosewood called.

Lily grinned at Phoenix as she moved forwards, stepping into the empty spot between Hunter and Quinn. Lily's thoughts were racing.

A happy memory. A truly happy memory. She thought of her family. Christmas, birthdays, thanksgivings. Anytime her family gathered together, she thought of it. But her mind kept slipping back to the thought of Easter. She didn't know why. Lily had not gone home for the past two Easter holidays. Third year's holiday had been filled with homework, which she had gotten Rose to help her with. Second year's holiday had been rainy the entire week, ruining the fun the family had planned to have at the Burrow.

The doors of the cupboard blew open just as Lily thought of her first year's holiday and, with no other happy memory, Lily clung to the thought of Easter in her first year.

Beside her, a coyote blasted out of the end of Hunter's wand, charging towards the Dementor. Quinn's Patronus flickered slightly when the Dementor turned towards her, but she continued to stand her ground. Before she could restore her Patronus, something had formed out of Lily's wand and flew at the Dementor, helping Hunter's coyote Patronus push the Dementor back into the cupboard.

Once again, the class was silent. Lily could feel their eyes on her back, flicking between her and her Patronus. The silence was broken, however, by Hunter suddenly cracking up, bending over and clutching his ribs as he laughed loudly. His Patronus disappeared, but Lily's remained where it was, staring up at her.

"Hunter! There's no need to laugh!" Professor Rosewood scolded.

At the same time, Jacob yelled, "Hey look, Potter, we match!"

Lily groaned when her Patronus nudged her hand. "You have got to be kidding me," she muttered, patting it on its head.

The lioness in front of her was just as beautiful as Jacob's lion had been. Her body, long and lean, was smoothly formed. The same silver as her Patronus shield from the previous lesson had been, but with eyes as white as snow. Lily couldn't describe how it felt to touch the Patronus. Being made of only what seemed like silver light, Lily expected her hand to pass through it, but her hand remained solidly on its head. She was the softest thing Lily had ever felt, and warmth spread from where her hand made contact, up her arm and into the rest of her body. She felt as if she could do anything, she was _that _happy, but as soon as she pulled away from the lioness and she disappeared, she felt normal again; not cold and scared or extremely happy.

Others were whispering as she stumbled her way through them to where Rosalie was with Alice and Katrina. She could feel their eyes following her, but was especially able to pick out a pair of blue eyes that burned into the back of her head.

Professor Rosewood called the next group forwards, and Alice touched Lily's shoulder as she passed by.

Her thoughts were everything. Not because of what animal her Patronus had formed, or that people were whispering about her. No, it was because of what the memory was that she had been thinking about when she cast the spell.

Easter of first year had been when she had brought home her best friend, because Albus and James had been bringing home their best friends as well, and James's had just happened to be her best friend's brother. It had been one of the most fun weeks she had, playing Quidditch in the backyard with James, Albus, Scorpius, Cedric and her friend, and sometimes even her parents played. Nights had been spent sleeping in the living room, playing Exploding Snap, Gobstones, wizard chess and trading Chocolate Frog cards. When Easter morning had come, they had flooed to the Burrow, where they hunted for eggs and chocolate Grandma Weasley had hidden for them.

XxXxX

"_This chocolate egg is huge!__"_

"_Taste it, Grandma makes the chocolate herself.__"_

"_Merlin! I__'__m tasting heaven, Lily.__"_

"_Told you.__"_

"_Do you mind if I kidnap your grandmother? She__'__s amazing. The greatest thing to ever happen to the Wizarding World. This egg is awesome!__"_

"_I thought the greatest thing to happen to the Wizarding World was my daddy?__"_

"_Harry is awesome too, coolest dad ever, but honestly, have you tasted this egg?__"_

"_He is adorable, Lily. You have to keep him. Grow up and marry him, you already have my approval. This boy knows what__'__s good, and clearly has taste, which means he__'__ll be more than happy to have you when you__'__re older.__"_

"_Grandma!__"_

XxXxX

Of course her happiest memory just _had _to be about her and Jacob Winchester.

**XxXxX**

The letters she had received from her family had offered no comfort, just like her friends. The whispers of her and Jacob's matched Patronus' traveled through the school quickly. Lily was unable to turn a corner without hearing someone giggling or chuckling and some girl glaring at her. Rosalie and Phoenix had definitely been enjoying it most though, teasing her endlessly about it. Jacob enjoyed it immensely, grinning cheekily at Lily whenever he passed by her and asking her out at every chance, saying that they were going to end up together anyways. It was_ destined_.

"Come on, Potter!"

Lily whirled around. "Leave me alone, Winchester!"

"It's going to happen anyways and you know it!" he laughed. "How many more signs do you need? Out Patronus forms match, and we fit in perfectly with that tradition your family has."

Lily was momentarily stumped. "Tradition?"

Jacob stared at her incredulously. "You don't know it? What, it just all happens by chance for all of you? Come on! Every Potter that has black hair ends up with a redhead, which obviously means that every Potter redhead is going to get with a black-haired person!"

"Ugh!" Lily screamed. She left Jacob in the Entrance Hall massaging the lump that was now growing on his head from her Potions book.

The morning the letters arrived, Circe landed on the table before Lily, three letters attached to her leg. Lily untied them quickly and gave Circe a bit of her toast. When Circe took off and before she opened the letters, Rosalie laughed loudly and pointed up towards the ceiling. Lily, looking up, groaned.

A great eagle owl was flying circles around Circe, who, as an incredibly vain owl, seemed to be enjoying the attention as she dove at the eagle owl, then tore out the window, the other owl following.

It wasn't a mystery whose owl it was when Jacob called down the Gryffindor table, "Another sign, Potter! Looks like Godric has a thing for Circe, though she doesn't mind." and he grinned at her around his fork, the same cocky grin he had been giving her since the second Patronus lesson. "By the way, Cedric says congrats!"

Lily turned away from him and tore into her letters. The first one from Teddy and Victoire was no help. In their letter, in response to her telling them what had happened in Defence, it was only filled with one word written over and over. "HA!" was written everywhere on the parchment, in every corner, surrounding the 'Love Teddy and Victoire' at the bottom and the 'Dear Lily' at the top. It seemed that Teddy and Victoire had been using a Copy Quill - one of Uncle George's inventions, which was a quill that copied down everything the speaker said - when they had written the letter and it had copied down all their laughter.

In her parents letter, her father had the nerve to tell her that her Potter grandparents' Patronus' matched too. That did not make her feel any better.

At least Rose had inherited the tact of Aunt Hermione. In her letter, she told Lily that Patronus' that matched didn't necessarily mean anything. It was pure coincidence and Lily was silly for even worrying about it. But she was proud anyways for Lily having conjured a corporeal Patronus, and that it was a lioness at that.

_You are such a Gryffindor at times that it worries me. Even your Patronus corresponds with your House! I'm warning you now, Lily. Don't do anything stupid that you Gryffindors tend to do. Like, I don't know, running into the Forbidden Forest for a thrill or staying out past curfew just to see if you can without getting caught. _

_Oh, why couldn't you have gone into Hufflepuff? They are so tame!  
_

_Love, _

_Rose_

Rose had obviously forgotten about their older cousin Lucy if she thought all Hufflepuffs were tame. Lily placed Rose's letter down with a grin. Luckily, she had at least one person she could always trust to see the bright side of things and make Lily feel better. She was however, tempted to send Teddy and Victoire a Howler. And her father was oblivious at times, so she couldn't blame him for pointing out something that she _really _did not enjoy knowing.

At that moment, the doors of the Great Hall flew open and a livid Professor Lamia came stalking inside. His pale, handsome face was twisted in a sneer. His steps were light but deliberate, as if he was gliding through the room. He passed by the Slytherin table, several of the Slytherins cringing back but looking relieved that it wasn't them he was after. The Ravenclaws did not react, for they were smart enough to know not to get on Professor Lamia's bad side. One Hufflepuff girl burst into tears when he glared at her as he passed, the rest of the table shaking in fear. But no, he moved past the Hufflepuff table as well until he was moving down along the Gryffindors, his multi-coloured eyes staring down each and everyone of them.

Lily stared back at him when his eyes fell on her. Rosalie snorted with laughter at her side. Alice whimpered. Katrina slammed her book shut loudly. Phoenix waved merrily at him. "Hi, Professor Lamia!"

Lily couldn't keep a straight face after Phoenix spoke so casually to him. She laughed right into his face, her hand coming up to clap over her mouth but the giggles still escaping. Her laughter turned into a yelp when Katrina kicked her under the table. The noise was loud in the eerily silent Great Hall.

Professor Lamia moved on, stopping only when he stood behind Louis and Jacob but the two boys took no notice of him. Hugo cleared his throat loudly, pointing his finger over Louis's shoulder at their professor until both boys turned. Hunter's head was ducked over his plate, but it was hard to ignore the unmistakable shaking of his shoulders.

Aiden sighed. "How can we help you, Professor?"

"It was you, wasn't it, Mr Winchester?" Professor Lamia hissed, his eyes flashing as he stared at Jacob.

Jacob looked clueless. "I have no idea what you're talking about, sir."

"Don't play dumb with me, boy!" Professor Lamia roared. "You sent all those owls to my classroom! You wanted to pull another one of your silly pranks and you'd thought you would get away with it. Not this time. You are coming up to my classroom _right now_ and cleaning up the mess those owls made!"

Jacob glanced quickly over at Louis, then back to Professor Lamia. "Sir, I really have no idea what you're talking about. I didn't send you any owls."

"Oh really?" Professor Lamia exclaimed. A malicious glint came to his eyes as he turned from Jacob and instead fixed his eyes on Lily. "Well if it wasn't you, then it must have been Miss Potter. She does take after her brothers."

Lily's mouth fell open.

She could tell that Professor Lamia knew that it wasn't her that sent those letters, but he was already moving towards her. He took hold of her arm and wrenched her out of her seat, despite her protests. Jacob, Louis and Rosalie all jumped out of their seats when he began to pull her away from the table.

"You have no proof that it was her!" Rosalie hissed. "You can't!"

"Sit - down - Miss Valentine!"

"Alright, alright!" Jacob moved forwards. He grabbed Lily's wrist and pulled her from Professor Lamia's now slack grip. There was cruel triumph in his eyes as Jacob said, "It was me. I sent you those owls. I wanted to get back at you for how you treat me every lesson, so I sent all the owls to mess up your room. The notes attached were just for my amusement though. Took me all night to write them, but it was well worth it."

Professor Lamia scowled but nodded. "Very well, Mr Winchester. You will clean up my room now, without magic, and serve detention tonight."

Jacob winked at Lily as he was led out of the Great Hall and flashed a thumbs-up to Hunter.

Rosalie smirked as she and Lily took their seats again. "Another sign, Lily," she snickered. "Jacob is ready and willing to take the fall for you. You really don't have much of a chance."

Lily smacked Rosalie with her spoon. "For once, I didn't do it!"

"And for once," Louis said as he, Hugo, Aiden and Hunter joined them, "she's not lying. It was me and Hunter who did it. We had been planning this prank with Jake for awhile. Been writing notes since school started, so you can guess that it was a hell of a lot of owls that Lamia got. Deserved it though, he's a git."

"But you just let Jacob take the fall for all of it, when it was you two who _actually_ sent the notes?" Alice asked. Her face was sad and disapproving and Louis now looked guiltily down at his fork. Lily was always astounded with how Alice could do that to Louis when, no matter what, she could never get him to feel guilty at all.

Hunter waved his hand. "Jake's fine with it. He'll probably be laughing as he cleans the git's room. He never would have let us try and be blamed as well. He would take full responsibility. It's what he does. Plus, he'll do anything to get on Lamia's nerves, so this is just a bonus for him. Lamia's pissed and Jacob didn't even have to lift a finger to get him so wound up. Should've seen the notes we sent anyways. They were hilarious. 'Hey, Rapunzel, get a haircut!' That was one of Jake's favourites."

"Professor McGonagall doesn't look too pleased," Katrina observed, indicating to the staff table with a tilt of her head.

Professor McGonagall sat tight lipped in the golden chair in the center of the table. She was staring off in the direction where Jacob and Professor Lamia had disappeared. Her eyes were narrowed, suspicious.

"Probably because Jacob got caught for _another _prank. Which means she has to punish him too," Aiden explained. "She said she would if he got caught once more after the fruit fiasco. Honestly, why did it have to be Professor Lamia? You _know _that he has a grudge against Jake for some reason."

"It's because Professor Lamia is the easiest target," Hugo said. "I told Dad what Professor Lamia was like, and he told me he was a lot like his old Potions Professor, Snape. Except Snape turned out to be good. I don't think that's ever going to happen with Lamia. He's cold to the core."

Katrina nodded along with Hugo's words. "Literally. I accidentally touched his hand once when he wasn't wearing those gloves of his. It felt like all the warmth was sucked out of my fingers."

Hugo stared at her. "Why did you touch his hand?"

"Don't go assuming I have a silly crush on him," Katrina said, her cheeks turning red. She adjusted her glasses to hide it. "I was talking to him at his desk about a homework question and I dropped my quill. It fell on his desk by his hand."

Hunter flipped his fork through his fingers. "I'm still going with my theory that Lamia is a vampire. I don't know why none of you believe me."

Everyone else exchanged looks. Katrina snatched the fork from Hunter. "Lamia is not a vampire because he can walk out in the sunlight, which vampires _cannot do_ and because Professor McGonagall would never hire a vampire. She wouldn't risk putting us in danger like that. So, Hunter, none of us believe your theory because it's completely ludicrous."

"Okay, fine, you keep thinking that," Hunter said, shrugging.

"Plus," Louis said, "if he was a vampire, our poor Alice would have nightmares for weeks."

"I'm not _that _defenceless, you know!" Alice said indignantly.

"You actually are, Alice," Lily told her.

Alice pouted.

**XxXxX**

**So, Lamia...do you think he's a vampire?**

**Patronus', gotta love 'em :P**

**And next up...Part one of the Masquerade! Yayyyy!  
**

**Anyways! Review please! Always love them!  
**


	18. The Masquerade

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter! How many times do I have to say this? :(**

**So, I'm in an extremely good mood today for tomorrow I am going to see the brilliant/amazing/totally awesome musical Wicked, which I absolutely _adore_. I've been waiting so long to see it and now it's only a few more hours and I've been listening to the music non-stop. As well, it's the Glee Rocky Horror Picture Show episode tonight which makes my day even better. Now, because I'm in an amazing mood, I'm treating you to part one of the masquerade! **

**If this chapter is a little boring, sorry, but I'll definitely make up for it in part two, because that's where things get a little..._heated_.**

**XxXxX  
**

"Hey, Lily!"

Lily turned at the sound of the voice, smiling. Will hurried up to her, shifting his bag on his shoulder. Classes had only gone on until noon and lunch was just being served in the Great Hall. They all had the afternoon off, for that night was finally the ball. The energy in the room was pulsing from all the excitement. Girls were gathered in groups, waving their hands around in the air to demonstrate what their dressed looked like and how they were going to do their hair while the boys were talking lowly, sending glances at a group of girls every now and then.

"What's up, Will?" Lily asked.

Will ran his hand through his hair uncomfortably. "So, I've been hearing things lately and - well…I was wondering if I would still be looking someone to spend time with at the ball?"

Lily stared at him curiously for a moment before it suddenly dawned on her. "Are you talking about the rumours about me and Winchester?" Lily laughed. "Come on, Will! Really? Do you see me dating Winchester? It's not going to happen, so you don't have to worry about it. Which means yes, you will have someone, but remember that you have to find her, right? She won't make it so easy for you."

Will grinned, suddenly at ease. "I'm sure I'll find her in a matter of seconds."

"Sure you will," she said. "I'll see you tonight."

Lily went and sat down at the table with the other girls. Phoenix was practically vibrating on the spot, Rosalie's hands locked together on her head as if trying to hold her down. Katrina had a scroll of parchment on the table before her, scribbling away quickly. Alice watched her, but became bored quickly and instead started to grab sandwiches from the platter in front of her.

"Kat, what are you doing?"

Katrina paused in her writing. "Finishing the essay for Defence Against the Dark Arts about what I believe my corporeal Patronus will be. I've done loads of research to see what animal I think suits me best. Have you finished yours?"

"Well, my essay was a bit easier, considering I already know what the form is," Lily said, laughing when Katrina narrowed her eyes at her. "I'm kidding. My essay only had to be on why I think the lioness is mine. Finished it yesterday. Professor Rosewood said that Patronus' are believed to become the form of whatever protects you, right? Well, my family is mainly all Gryffindors - lions - lioness, it was pretty simple to figure out."

"Well, easy for you." Katrina handed Lily a piece of parchment that was covered in species of animals and why she chose them. "See, I was thinking a dolphin, or a prime ape, because they're smart, but I don't think that's enough. So I started thinking about using an owl. They're intelligent but also can be quiet."

"They can also spin their heads all the way around like The Exorcist."

Phoenix stopped bouncing to stare at Rosalie, like the other three girls were.

"What?" Rosalie asked. "I've seen Muggle movies."

"What do you know, so have I!" Hunter exclaimed as he slipped into the seat beside Rosalie and slung his arm over her shoulders. She laughed and pushed his arm away.

"I like horror ones," she told him. Hunter looked impressed.

"And what do you like, Lily?"

Lily deliberately placed her bag down in the empty seat next to her when Jacob began eyeing it. "When you go away," she snapped. Jacob only flicked his hair out of his eyes as a response, instead taking the seat next to Hunter. Hugo moved Lily's bag onto the ground so he could sit.

"Shouldn't you girls be getting ready?" he asked. "It takes you like four hours, doesn't it?"

Phoenix scoffed. "It takes Muggle girls four hours, Hughie -"

"Please don't call me that."

"- but we have magic. Which means we'll be ready in no time."

"Three hours, give or take," Alice giggled. Phoenix glared at her, seemed to think about it for a minute, then grinned and nodded.

"But only because we have to look perfect," she explained.

"Done."

Rosalie's one word had everyone laughing.

Lily's laughter subsided into small chuckles as she glanced down at her plate, which was still empty. She reached forwards to grab a sandwich from the platter in front of her, and lifted her eyes.

Jacob was grinning at her, the same cocky smirk that she was accustom to. She was use to seeing it on his face now, but it still affected her. She had been waiting, just waiting, all week since Professor Lamia had dragged him out of the Great Hall, wondering if Jacob was going to approach her - going to say that she owed him for getting her out of trouble. But he hadn't. He made no move towards her, but gave her the same look that haunted her sleep, haunted her when she was awake, when she was eating - she could even feel his eyes on her in the middle of classes, in his usual spot behind her.

Lily shifted in her seat, no longer hungry, for her stomach was flipping.

"Maybe we should be starting to get ready," she said loudly over their laughter. "We all know how long Phoenix takes to get ready, and she's going to want to perfect all of us tonight."

Phoenix grinned and clapped her hands. "Let's go girls, chop chop!"

Katrina had to be physically dragged away from her essay.

"What are you guys going to be doing until the ball starts?" Alice asked.

"Getting ready," Louis said.

Lily shook her head at Alice. "Translation: They're going to be crashed up in their dorm with whatever food they have stashed up there for four hours. Five minutes before the ball starts, they'll get dressed."

"Five?" Hunter mock gasped. "Potter, you insult me."

"It's actually about two minutes, Lily," Hugo explained.

Jacob laughed. "Those other three minutes are used to shower...maybe."

**XxXxX**

Phoenix was still fussing with Lily's hair even as they descended the steps of the girls dormitory for the ball. Apparently, some of the messiness was still visible in the new curls of her red hair. Lily kept trying to assure Phoenix that it was fine - her hair had no chance of being styled perfectly like Phoenix's or Rosalie's. Lily let Phoenix continue though, for Lily had to least managed to convince her to keep her hair the same colour and down instead of charming it blond and putting it up in the elaborate style that Phoenix and Alice had been planning.

Down in the common room, the girls in fourth year and younger stared enviously at the five sixth year girls as they made their way to the portrait hole. Phoenix twirled the bottom of her ostentatiously silver sequined gown around by a group of third year girls.

"That's mean, Feens," Alice said softly, smiling at the third years gently.

Alice had shot down every one of Auntie Fleur's and Dominique's suggestions of dresses for a pale pink, knee length gown and a simple white mask. Her blond hair was pulled back in a ponytail that fell over her one shoulder in a clump of curls. Lily knew Alice was not one to be the center of attention like Rosalie, Phoenix or herself, which is why she normally went for the simple look. That and also the fact that Neville, her father, was chaperoning the ball and would most definitely be taking pictures to send back to their families.

Speaking of pictures, Lily did a double take as she saw Rosalie with her Polaroid camera. Rosalie saw her looking and grinned smugly, snapping a picture of Lily then slipping it into the silver clutch that dangled from her wrist by a thin chain.

Alex stopped them before they left the common room, his face red and his eyes downcast.

"The guys are already down there," he said, and his eyes flashed to Lily. The flush in his cheeks spreading down his neck. "Jake said he'd be waiting for you."

"Did he now?" Lily asked. "Well, I intend to find Will before he finds me."

Alex gave a little chuckle. "You look really pretty, Lily," he muttered, albeit reluctantly, his face beat red now.

"What about -" Phoenix began but Rosalie shut her up with a sudden picture being taken in front of her face. Sneak attacks were Rosalie's specialty.

One of Lily's eyebrows rose beneath her mask. Alex shifted from foot to foot, uncomfortable about something, but was saved from explaining by Roxanne appearing by his side. She was dressed casually in jeans and a shirt, her hair messy.

"Jacob Winchester told Alex to say all those things to you," Roxanne said, patting Alex on the shoulder.

"Of course," Lily heard Katrina whisper to Alice who giggled.

"Sorry you can't come tonight, Roxy -"

"Don't bother, Lils," Roxanne said before Lily could finish. "I'm glad I'm not going but the other girls in my year aren't. Really, fancy things like this where I have to dress up nicely and wear heels - yeah, it's not my thing. Get me tickets to a Puddlemere United Quidditch game and then I'll be as excited as all you girls are."

Phoenix sighed heavily. "You are _such _a tomboy, Roxanne."

"Thank you. But the only way I ever would have gone to one of these things is because - er - never mind. Have fun tonight though. Here, Rosalie, give me the camera, I'll get a picture of all five of you."

"Wait, wait!" Lily exclaimed. "Back up. What would make you go to a ball? A certain band playing? The food?" Lily gasped. "A boy? _Who_?"

Roxanne quickly took the camera to hide her face as she snapped a picture of all of them.

"Roxanne!"

"No, Lily, I didn't mean anything like that."

Rosalie winked at Lily as she took the camera back from Roxanne. "Let's go! We're wasting the night away! Roxanne - I know, and Alex - no more doing any of Jacob's bidding. Leave the smooth talking to Lily for him to do, however many times it continues to fail for him."

Alex grinned. "Good. I did _not _enjoy that."

Lily laughed and ruffled Alex's hair. "And I think you've been spending too much time with Winchester if you're willing to do his dirty work. And now you," she said, linking her arm through Rosalie's. "Explain now what you know."

Rosalie easily slipped out of Lily's grasp and was out the portrait hole in a swish of purple satin.

**XxXxX**

In the Great Hall, Jacob slipped Hunter the Firewhiskey they had snuck in under Professor Longbottom's nose. When Aiden had turned his back - for he would surely try to stop them - Hunter dumped the entire contents of the bottle into the punch bowl and Vanished the bottle with his wand, which he had also snuck in.

"Tell me again," Jacob murmured to Hunter

Hunter groaned. "If we do this, then you'll be dating Potter within the month and she definitely won't mind then. If this doesn't make Potter loosen up around you, I don't know what will," Hunter said, stowing his wand away inside his dress robes. "All we need to do is get her to drink enough of it."

"Getting my cousin drunk?" Louis asked as he appeared at Hunter's side and poured himself a large glass of punch. "Don't know if I approve of this plan. Anyone else and I'd be on board, but Lily…you should try Alice - she definitely needs to come out of that comfy, innocent little shell of hers."

Jacob smirked. "What's with the red handprint on your face, Lou?"

"That's from number six," Hugo stated. He took one sniff of the drink Louis held out to him and grimaced. "She did not appreciate being dumped at the ball. And it was pretty tactless." Hugo was clearly not amused.

"You're so much like Auntie Mione," Louis huffed, then shrugged. "She should have seen it coming, anyways."

"You were snogging her just yesterday!" Hugo exclaimed.

"Well, if I'm to beat Rosalie in this bet of ours - no, I have not forgotten - then I can't stay with the girls for long. Phoenix is not making much headway with Clowes, though." Louis laughed. "I just have to stay with the girl long enough for it to be called a relationship - two weeks, I think - then I'm onto the next one. Hey, I have until January to get through fifteen girls and I'm only on number six - no, seven now."

"You should be nicer," Alice said. All five boys jumped at her sudden appearance. Louis clutched his heart madly, staring intensely at Alice.

"I'm nice to you at least," he said with a charming smile.

"That doesn't help the fact that Abigail Henderson is now crying her eyes out in the girls lavatories on the second floor."

"They can't handle the break-up then they shouldn't date me in the first place."

Alice flushed and lifted her finger to Louis's face as if to scold him, but Aiden stepped in before he could and took Alice's hand. He placed it in the crook of his arm. Louis's look was suddenly murderous.

"Calm down, mate," Hunter said to him."We know you were right."

Louis looked confused, but his eyes flickered to Alice and Aiden. He turned away from them and poured himself another goblet of punch.

"Want to dance?" Aiden asked Alice quickly when she looked as if she wanted to rant and rave at Louis's back. Alice threw Louis a sharp look when he turned again but nodded, letting Aiden lead her away.

"Wait!" Jacob called. "Where are the other girls?"

Alice pointed towards the entrance to the Great Hall with her free hand. "They got caught by Dad. I just managed to get away, but Dad wanted more pictures of Lily and the others to send to Harry and the rest of her family."

And she disappeared into the crowd of dancing people on Aiden's arm. Louis stared after them, his goblet of spiked punch forgotten, an odd expression on his face.

**XxXxX**

"Yes, your dad will love these, Lily."

"Thanks Nev - uhh…I mean, Professor Longbottom."

Neville laughed. "Have fun tonight girls."

"Don't let anyone get too drunk, Professor!" Phoenix called after her as she grabbed Katrina's arm and pulled her towards the doors of the Great Hall.

Lily latched to Rosalie's arm again and walked more slowly. "Tell me now, Rosie."

Rosalie rolled her eyes. "It's nothing even that big, Lily. I'm a sneaky, observant person so I pick up on things a lot easier than others because I can see the signs! I've seen Roxanne in the common room sometimes getting help with her homework or otherwise just talking with this boy and she blushes. That's what made it weird. It was Roxanne - _blushing_. Though, I could have been mistaken, because her skin is darker, it's a little bit harder to tell so -"

"_Who_?"

"Aiden, alright!" Rosalie shouted.

Lily was gobsmacked. "Aiden? As in our Aiden - Aiden Forbes? And my cousin? Okay, what's going on? This is weird. My friends seem to be hooking up with my cousins left and right!"

"They aren't hooking up," Rosalie said calmly. "They've just been talking. I think Roxanne likes him, but I'm not sure that he knows. And none of your friends have gone with Louis yet. To tell you - I would, if I didn't know how much of a cheating git he was and wouldn't dump me within the week."

"Uh, Rosalie, ew."

"He's part Veela, like me. We're drawn to one another."

"Please tell me you're joking."

Rosalie laughed and patted Lily's hand. "Well, yeah! Me, dating Louis? No, that would be just weird. Plus, I have that bet with Louis right now and I will not lose and I will not be his slave for a week! He will lose and have to go streaking through the school, entirely naked with his hair charmed pink."

"All of his hair?"

"_All_ of his hair," Rosalie said wickedly.

**XxXxX**

"There's Lily, Jake," Hugo said, nodding towards the entrance. "And there's Will Schell as well - about thirty feet away and closing in."

Jacob turned eagerly, craning his head over all the others in the room, pushing himself higher up by his hand on Hunter's and Louis's shoulders. The two boys protested, but let him lift himself anyways. Jacob's eyes were only drawn to Lily, who stood between Rosalie and Phoenix. Jacob knew that Lily looked more beautiful than the half-Veela and the pure-blood combined. That was his opinion and he was sticking to it, no matter who thought otherwise.

She wore a red strapless gown with a long slit up the leg that he rather enjoyed. Long black gloves covered her arms up to her elbows and a golden wire mask shaped like a butterfly covered half of her face. He liked that her hair was down in spiral like curls compared to some - most - of the girls in the Hall that had their hair up in tight styles. They looked uncomfortable.

Not far from her, Jacob spotted Will. He was a lot closer than Jacob was and this fact had Jacob fighting back the growl that grew in his throat. He did not need anyone questioning him now.

_Back off, will you!_ he hissed to himself. All the odd instincts that filled him a moment ago lessened slightly. A snarl reverberated inside his head.

Jacob took the goblet of punch Hunter handed him and only hesitated a second, steeling himself, before he went to meet Lily.

**XxXxX**

Lily instantly knew that it was going to be an interesting night as she entered the Great Hall. The first group of seventh year Hufflepuffs she saw were sharing a drink from a silver flask. One girl with hair charmed green hid the flask down her cleavage as Professor McKnight walked past.

The Great Hall was decorated in gold and silver: golden drapes, an extravagant golden fountain filled with silver, glittering water that reflected like a mirror, silver tablecloths with gold plates, cutlery and goblets and even gold and silver roses placed in archways, on the tables and anywhere available in the room. Girls like Phoenix that had chosen a silver or gold dress seemed to be blending in with their surroundings while Lily knew that she most definitely stuck out with her red dress and red hair.

However, there was a person who stuck out more than Lily. Quinn Mercado, the Hufflepuff girl that had been in the same group as Hunter and Lily during their practical Defence classes, was wearing a long gown that was a mix of every colour of the rainbow. It looked as if someone just took a white dress and dunked it into several different colour dyes, so the colours seeped together in some sections, producing new colours. Quinn's mask would have been simple and black, if it hadn't been for the rainbow of feathers that stuck out from it. She had even changed her long, waist-length hair to a violent purple.

"Only Quinn Mercado could make looking like a parrot _actually _work," Phoenix said, staring at the girl in shock.

Katrina waved her hand in front of Phoenix's face. "I think she's having a fashion blackout. I cannot get a response from her right now."

Lily noticed Alice dancing with Aiden and paused, watching curiously. Aiden was normally one to see things faster than others did, but the fact that he might not know about Roxanne liking him seemed odd. Roxanne was not someone that was very subtle. If Aiden did know though, she wondered what would be keeping him back. Did he not like her? That was silly. Aiden would at least give her a chance if he knew. Or maybe it was that Roxanne was younger than him, but if anyone was to be trusted with Roxanne then it would be Aiden. If you couldn't trust Aiden, then you couldn't trust anyone.

"Lily, look," Rosalie said, suddenly grinning. She was pointing somewhere into the crowd, just to the left of Aiden and Alice, where a familiar head of black hair was moving towards them.

Will, the right half of his face obscured by his mask, was walking with one of his friends, having not seemed to notice Lily yet. The white mask looked fantastic with his copper skin and his dark blue dress robes.

Before Lily could wave to Will and call his attention, her sight was blocked by a wall of black. Looking up, she rolled her eyes when she saw that it was Jacob Winchester staring down at her with his usual grin. There was something in his sapphire eyes that made her hesitant to accept the drink he held out to her. Instead of wearing Wizard dress robes, he wore a Muggle suit with the jacket left unbuttoned and the tie loose around his neck. The black mask only covered the area around his eyes, but was engraved so subtly that only close-up could you see the details.

"Smile!" Rosalie exclaimed, snapping a picture of Jacob.

"Hey, Jake, did you see Quinn Mercado?" Phoenix asked. "Look at her! It's just insane what she's wearing!"

"What? Oh, yeah…"

Lily took a sip of the drink, cringing when it burned her throat on the way down. When she swallowed the bit she had, she gazed into the goblet. She had a strong suspicion of what was inside it, mixed with the punch, as she had most definitely had Firewhiskey before, once at her last birthday with her family. Ignoring the part of her that was screaming for her to stop, she tipped back the goblet again and took a longer drink. She was not one to turn down Firewhiskey when given the chance.

"You look good, Lily," Jacob said as Rosalie stored away the picture into her clutch and hurried over to where the other boys were standing.

"There's Darren!" Phoenix said loudly, tearing her eyes away from Quinn and her insane ensemble for the night. "I wonder if he'll dance with me?"

And she ran off as well. Katrina shook her head and, glancing between Lily and Jacob, quickly excused herself to find the others. Lily cursed the three of them leaving her alone with Jacob. She twisted the now empty goblet in her hands and nodded in response to Jacob's earlier compliment.

"What?" he asked. "Nothing in return?"

Lily did not want to spend her night in Jacob's company. She would much prefer Will who was now moving in their direction again, having stopped to talk to some people.

"I could use another drink," she said, pushing the goblet into his hands.

Jacob's eyes widened for a second when he saw that the goblet was empty, but the sudden surprise was replaced by a satisfied smirk as he took her goblet and nodded. "As you wish." He disappeared the way he came, where the others had been swallowed up by a group of boys that crowded themselves at the table filled with refreshments.

Lily waved when Will finally noticed her, a bright smile on his face. A blush lit her cheeks as red as her dress. They both laughed when he kissed her hand elegantly and she fluttered her hand in front of her face to fan herself. She chanced a glance over her shoulder and saw that the group of boys were gone. Rosalie was holding Jacob's wrist and saying something to him. When she saw Lily looking, her eyes widened over Jacob's shoulder and she flicked them rapidly to the large, dancing crowd. It was a look that clearly said "Go now before he turns and sees you." Lily took the hint and quickly grasped Will's hand and began pulling him into the crowd.

His smile grew at her apparent bluntness. "I found you," he said.

Lily grinned back at him. "Yes you did," she told him, feeling as if she were congratulation a three-year-old for doing something simple. "Now, let's go dance."

Of course, Lily was still curious about everything that was related to Jacob and why he seemed so mysterious at times, but she felt that it was pointless thinking about them now at the ball. It would only bring down her night. Why would she just mess everything up when she already had her hand in Will's - something she had been hoping for a couple of months now - and was looking forwards to the rest of the night with him? It would just be stupid.

As well, one of her favourite songs was being played live by one of her favourite Wizarding bands, FluxFire. The lead singer - a small redhead like Lily - was bouncing around the stage in a bright green dress and a neon yellow mask.

Lily could already feel like her night was going to be perfect.

**XxXxX**

**TADA! Part one is finished!**

**Stuff gets intense next chapter, so I hope it lives up to your expectations :)**

**Anyways, review please!  
**


	19. A Terrible Night

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, but I will own all the movies if my friends are buying me them like I think I heard them say they are**

**I saw Wicked on Wednesday and it was...more amazing than expected. I was speechless at parts, with major goosebumps from the notes they hit and all the emotion left me in tears through most of it. Such a beautiful musical, I seriously suggest that you go see it. You won't be disappointed.**

**XxXxX  
**

A slower song began after the first one and Lily happily let Will pull her closer. She saw Alice and Aiden leaving the dance floor and head in the direction of the others. Lily forced herself not to look over to where they were so she wouldn't have to see Jacob's face when he saw her with Will. A flash of blue at the corner of her eye caught her attention. She turned her head just in time to see Hugo leading Katrina through the crowd, but not stopping to dance. The two of them had Lily wondering if Phoenix had yet succeeded with Darren as she turned her attention back to Will.

"I didn't expect it to be so easy to find you," he said over the music. "You said you were going to make it hard for me."

Lily shrugged, her arms hooked around his neck. "I decided to give you a break. You haven't had it very easy lately."

"Don't I know it." he laughed. "Who knew Jacob Winchester could throw a punch? I thought pure-bloods relied completely on their magic to defend themselves. Didn't know that some could actually fight Muggle style."

"Please, let's not talk about Winchester."

"Oh, okay. Sorry."

They lapsed into silence as they continued to dance, but it was comfortable. As more songs passed, Will began telling her about his family. A story about him and his half-sister Farrow had her laughing as he explained how he and Farrow had crashed one of their cousins' wedding because their family had been the only family not invited.

"She began throwing the cake at us," he said through chuckles, "then realized what she was doing and screamed like she was being murdered. Farrow and I thought we had done enough damage and Disapparated. I hadn't wanted to go along with Farrow's plan in the first place - it seemed just a little too cruel - but it was definitely worth it in the end."

"You're so mean!"

"She didn't invite us!"

"Still! It was her wedding so it was mean!" Lily laughed.

"And you," Rosalie's voice suddenly cut in from behind Lily, "are being mean by hogging our Lily, Will."

Will's hands dropped from Lily's waist. She turned to glare at Rosalie for interrupting them, but Rosalie was unaffected. "Now, Will, there's no need to feel guilty. I just want a few dances with my Lily dear here. Plus, we were going to have dinner now. We've got ourselves a table. You can join us if you want."

Will shook his head. "Now that you remind me, I should go make sure my mates haven't killed each other. But I'll be back for you later, Lily."

"Looking forward to it," she said, waiting until he walked away to round on Rosalie. "What the hell?"

Rosalie shrugged. "Hey, I'm glad you're finally making some progress with him, but I didn't say I'd let him steal you the whole night. You're supposed to dance with your friends as well at dances you know."

Lily rolled her eyes. "Let's just go eat. I'm hungry, now that I think about it."

"Told you."

"Shut up."

At the table, Lily seated herself between Alice and Aiden. Phoenix was red faced behind her menu, Jacob glared down at his fork, Louis stared across the table at Aiden, and Katrina and Hugo were missing. Alice explained to her that they had been on the dance floor for a little while, but had disappeared awhile ago and hadn't been seen since. Lily really didn't want to know what her cousin and friend could be up to.

Dinner was served by saying out loud what you wanted from a menu, and the food appeared on the plate. Lily had to continuously tune out Hunter as she ate, for he seemed keen to point out every provocative detail to a girl's dress. Backless. Cleavage. Leg slit. Short. He had only stopped when Rosalie put down her fork, picked up her menu and knocked him around the head with it. Hunter, massaging his head, got up from the table and returned moments later with three goblets, one of which he gave to Lily. Jacob glanced up when Hunter placed one of the other goblets in front of him, then grinned across the table at Lily and raised his glass to her. Lily ignored him.

Lily didn't understand why she was drinking from the goblet, for it was obvious that it was from the spiked punch again. But she tipped it back and drained it in one. Maybe it was for the fact that this night wasn't turning out to be what she expected so far. She had expected more to have happened with Will, but so far it had only been dancing and occasionally talking.

She was beginning to feel the effects of the two goblets of spiked punch that she had drank. She knew she was a lightweight when it came to her alcohol tolerance, and she knew that she was going to regret ever drinking. At the moment, however, she couldn't find it in herself to care. She was enjoying the slight spinning feeling.

Hands suddenly clapped down on her arms and lifted her from her chair. Alice, Rosalie and Phoenix grinned at her. Rosalie flicked the feathers of her mask out of her face and exclaimed, "Girl time!"

Lily laughed and let herself be dragged away.

The night improved for at least a little while. Lily danced with her friends - minus Katrina, for she was still missing - and had to convince Rosalie not to push her onto the stage. Lily really wanted the band's autographs. Will returned for her. She watched Phoenix be swept onto the dance floor by Darren, her face as red as it had been at the table. Rosalie also dragged what had to be a half-drunk Hunter to the crowd, where they mocked all the others around them, dancing crudely to a slow song. At one point they grabbed each other's hands and locked Will and Lily within the circle of their arms. Will looked uncomfortable, so Lily jokingly punched his chest. He looked down at her and grinned, but only relaxed when Hunter and Rosalie spun away, Hunter dipping the half-Veela clumsily and almost dropping her.

"Watch it, Payne!"

"What? Or else you'll put me in pain?"

"Enough with the name puns!"

"Sorry." Hunter sounded like a slurring wounded puppy. "Wanna spy on Hugo and Katrina?"

"Read my mind."

Lily shook her head at the odd exchange. "They're a little weird."

"You don't say," Will laughed.

The song changed. It was slow and soft and Lily could see friends breaking away from groups to find someone to dance with. Lily moved forwards, hers arms wrapping around Will's neck and his hands moving to her waist.

Then there was a tap on Lily's shoulder.

Behind her stood Jacob, smiling.

"What do you want, Winchester?" Lily asked, removing her arms from Will's neck to cross them over her chest. Will was quiet behind her, his form tense. Jacob's eyes flickered from Lily to Will before they settled on her again and he extended his hand towards her.

"I'd like a dance, if you would, Lily."

Lily scoffed. "No way!" But at the same time, Will said, "Of course she would."

"What?" Lily rounded on Will, her eyebrows raised. Even behind her mask, Will could understand what her expression was about.

"I'm sorry, Lily," he said sheepishly, "but I may have promised Winchester a dance with you if he'd leave us alone for the night. I know I wasn't in the position to be making these decisions for you, but come on, it's one dance. Three minutes - you don't even have to talk - and he won't bother us again for the rest of the night."

Lily thought the begging note in his voice was pathetic and, shocking herself and the two boys, turned to Jacob to slide her arms around his neck. Will was right. Who was he to make these choices for her? The look on Will's face told her that he actually hadn't expected her to dance with Jacob at all tonight, which was exactly why she was. It was mean, yes, but she felt enjoyment in spiting him, especially in front of the people that were turning to look at them now for just standing around in the middle of the dance floor. Lily flicked her head to the side to indicate that Will should leave. He stared at her for a moment before he nodded stiffly and walked away. Lily refused to look up at Jacob's face as his hands placed themselves on her waist.

"Watch the hands, Winchester," Lily said. "And stop grinning at me. You're not so innocent right now, you know. Bribed for a dance to make you leave us alone. Really? And I know that it was you who spiked the punch. It's obvious."

"There's no need to flip out on me, Lily." Jacob's hand squeezed her hip. Lily jumped and smacked his shoulder. "I didn't even say anything. It can be like dear Schell said. We don't even need to talk - just let me enjoy the moment of having you."

Lily made the space between the two of them wider. "You don't _have _me, Winchester. And stop talking."

"You're the one talking."

"Shut up."

They revolved slowly, Lily's hands squeezing Jacob's shoulder painfully whenever it felt like his hands were moving. Lily could tell that the end of the song was approaching; she could say the remaining three lines before they were sang. It reminded her how she really, _really _wanted an autograph. _Badly_. She looked away quickly when Jacob followed her line of sight towards the stage, where Lily knew the lead singer was with one of her band members, leaning on his shoulder with her other arm in the air. Lily knew the band so well that she knew the positions they normally took during each song. She was obsessed.

She felt when one of Jacob's hands dropped from her waist. It moved to his pocket, where he squeezed whatever was inside. There came the sound of crackling paper.

Abruptly, she pulled away from him and grabbed his wrist, pulling him towards the entrance to the Great Hall and out the front doors of Hogwarts before the last line of the song rang out. Jacob said nothing but followed silently and Lily glanced around repeatedly to make sure they weren't followed. She dragged him a distance away from the Great Hall, around the side of the school and towards the lake, trying to keep her heels from sinking into the grass.

Others were walking along the lake, holding hands or just talking. Girls held heels in their hands. One couple, sitting at the edge of the lake with their feet in the water, were Katrina and Hugo. The silver moonlight made their hair glow, Hugo's with a tinge of red as it connected with his curly hair. Lurking behind a rosebush, being as inconspicuous as ever, were Rosalie and Hunter, giggling and chuckling, peeking through the leaves to stare at the couple.

Lily hurried along, hoping they weren't spotted, and only stopped when they reached a bench underneath a tree, the solid trunk blocking them from view of the others. A rosebush surrounded the bench and the lake lay before them, a smooth, polished black with silver ripples whenever the Giant Squid ran one of its tentacles near the surface of the water.

It would have been a romantic spot, if it hadn't been that she was there with Jacob, who was staring at her, confused.

It was cold out here. The breeze hinted at the beginning of November, which was only a few hours away from them now. The cold made her wire mask freezing and she pulled it off impatiently. Goosebumps rose on her bare shoulders and arms, and she adjusted her dress so that the slit in the leg was closed.

The scene was suddenly too familiar as she turned to look at Jacob's face, now devoid of his mask as well, and saw those blue eyes staring at her, searching her face for any hint of what was going on.

"Jacob," she said softly. His eyes locked onto hers as soon as she spoke his name. "Jacob, what's been going on with you lately?"

XxXxX

"_Jake! Come on, Jake!" an eleven-year-old Lily exclaimed, chasing after the black-haired boy in front of her. The boy glanced over his shoulder at her and moved faster, ducking into the first empty classroom he came across and slamming the door shut behind him. There was the click of the lock and Lily sighed impatiently. She pulled out her wand, made sure no one was watching, and muttered, "_Alohomora."

_The door unlocked. Lily pushed it open, standing in the doorway with her arms crossed over her chest as Jacob sat on the teachers' desk at the front of the classroom, his legs dangling over the edge and his head staring down at his toes._

_Lily closed the door behind her and locked it again. She moved through the aisles of desk until she stood by the desk and lifted herself onto it with a struggle. She was too small for her own good. When she was on top, she slid herself towards Jacob until their sides were touching completely, shoulder-to-shoulder, hip-to-hip and ankle-to-ankle. _

"_Jacob," Lily said softly. "What's been going on with you lately?"_

_Jacob didn't look up, but she could see the side of his face and knew that he was itching to say something. "Nothing."_

"_Don't lie to me."_

_She leaned down and looked up at him so that he could see her face. She jutted out her bottom lip in a pout and widened her eyes._

_He sighed, but she grinned victoriously. He always gave in so easily when she gave him that look. "It's…it's my parents. They - um - they sort of heard about me being friends with you and aren't too happy about it. They say that I should stay away from you because you're bad news. Because you're half-blood."_

_Lily was silent for a moment, but then, "That's it?"_

"That's it?_" he repeated, incredulous. "I don't know what they'll do if I don't stop being friends with you! They might do something to me - to _you_! I can't let them hurt you, Lily - you're my best friend."_

"_Exactly," Lily smiled at him and hugged his shoulders. Jacob shifted, still uncomfortable with being hugged by a girl. "You won't let them hurt me. So why should I be afraid? And when have you ever been afraid of your parents? They haven't done anything yet, so why would they start now? Plus, your brother, Cedric, is mates with my brother and my cousin, and you don't see your parents doing anything about that, do you? They're just trying to scare you."_

"_But -"_

"_No! Stop worrying, you sourpuss. Honestly, Jakie, don't worry about me."_

"_Don't call me Jakie."_

"_Then stop worrying."_

_Silence, then, "Fine!" and her hug was returned. _

XxXxX

Jacob looked away from her quickly and stared out over the lake. His hands turned his mask over and over. It was first year all over again. The look on Jacob's face told her that he wanted to say something, but he was nervous to, uncomfortable with what the results could be. He looked around the tree trunk to where Rosalie, Hunter, Katrina and Hugo were and then turned to her, lifting one leg up onto the bench and leaning back against the tree. His face, so conflicted, softened as he stared at her.

He sighed. "It's nothing big, Lily. Don't worry."

"You can't lie to me, Jacob, you know you can't. Couldn't first year, can't now. And you can't say that it's nothing when you're so…different." She surveyed him with her green eyes. "You've been sneaking out at night. I've caught you twice so far. And you're so…distant at times, cold, empty. I keep hearing that you had things happening last year and I took it for family problems, but now I know that it's not. And Darren knows! How come Darren, of all people, knows? Why doesn't Hunter? Why are you keeping secrets from him? And this is something big. I can tell. So please, don't lie to me."

It was odd, having a conversation with Jacob. The only way she had been able to talk to him lately was during arguments. So, trying to get him to tell her what was wrong with him was the weirdest thing she had done in awhile. But, just by the look on Jacob's face, she knew that this conversation wasn't going to go the same way as the one in first year had. She could tell that whatever was happening with him was more serious than his parents wanting him to stay away from her. And it was something that scared him - scared Jacob Winchester. She was worried for the boy she claimed to hate.

"Lily," Jacob said. She forced herself not to move back as his hand moved forwards and covered her wrist. His hand seared with heat, warming the skin of her wrist. It reminded her horribly of the hand that had touched her neck during the Dementor lesson. She realized she was shivering. "If you knew, you'd hate me more than you already do and I wouldn't be able to bear it. If I could tell you, I would - but it is not something that can easily be said. You might become afraid of me, but you're not like that. You would stand tall and look down at me, think of me something wrong and disgusting, and I wouldn't be able to bear that either."

Lily first felt surprise, then annoyance, and then anger as she thought about what he said. So, he thought that she would just cast him off - not that she didn't already, but that was because he was a prat - and not even try to hear him out. He thought that she thought herself to be some superior person, only wanting to know people that were whole, people that weren't tainted by something, and would completely blow off others who had something wrong, something to hide, like a deadly secret, a disease or a strong fault of some kind.

Jacob was looking away from her again, his hands holding his chin and elbows resting on his knees as he stared out over the lake, watching couples hurry along the edge or disappear behind a bush.

She thought again about what he said. He was obviously more scared then she thought him to be, if he said that she would think him wrong.

Just as she was going to open her mouth to speak, Jacob spoke again. He sat up straight and looked at her, a forced grin etching onto his face. He seemed to realize just how much Lily was thinking about what he had said, for he turned on his normal self. "Shouldn't you get back, Potter? Your date will be worrying about you, sneaking off with me of all people. By the way, how many times has ol' Schelly stepped on your feet so far?"

"Really?" Lily sighed, the breath coming out annoyed. "Must you turn on Will already? What did he do to you?"

When Jacob's eyes caught hers, she looked away, staring determinedly at one of the ripples in the water. He shifted beside her and his hand touched her wrist again, warm on her skin. Her hand twitched. She should have pulled away - she should have done it now.

But she didn't. His other hand touched her chin, turning her to face him. Half his face was hidden in darkness but his eyes glowed in the moonlight, his face shining and beautiful. Her breath caught. Her heart hammered. He struck a magnificent picture in front of her, staring intensely, with the tree and the lake and the rosebushes. It was the picture she was always trying to capture on paper - perfect and priceless, too difficult to explain with mere words. But, she didn't want it. She wanted to rip this picture as if she was tearing it out of her sketchbook and toss it aside. It wasn't hers. It wasn't the picture she had been planning.

"Don't." Her voice sounded like a croak.

"What does he have that I don't?" Jacob asked desperately, begging, pleading. Lily didn't like pleading. "What does he know about you that makes you choose him? Does he even know anything about you? Does he?" Jacob's voice rose, his one hand holding her chin tightly so she couldn't look away from him and the other clutching her hand. "Does he even know what things you love? I do!"

"Jacob, stop it."

"_I _know that you love those Muggle Broadway plays, that even though it's cliché you prefer lilies, that you love dogs more than cats, you love tussling with your family, and that you love days in where you just slouch around in pyjamas all day. I know that you're completely and utterly insane at times, but can sit still for hours when you're reading or drawing, and -"

Lily's hands shook. "Don't!"

"- if you could, you would eat dessert before the main course, and pumpkin juice makes you sick to your stomach, you're scared of spiders but you detest snakes -"

"I said enough!"

Lily ripped away from his grip and made to stand, but his hands locked onto her wrists and pulled her back, holding her near him. She struggled feebly, but Jacob wouldn't let go and, before she could stop him - did she want to stop him? - he swooped down and kissed her.

Lily's struggling stopped. She was shocked beyond belief. Her mind was unravelling at the seams, her brain was melting through her head, her stomach knotting. Was that rushing wind she heard in her ears? And her skin was blazing; Jacob's hands were now sliding up her arms. Her own hands lifted, grabbing onto his open jacket to…push him away? But no, her hands were instead twisting the fabric, pulling him closer, trying to draw the heat to her. One of his hands splayed on the bare patch of skin between her shoulder blades and she gasped. She let out a pitiful whimper as Jacob's lips moved to her throat, but she was finally able to breath. The air was cold, biting as she breathed it in, and the more she did, the more her mind cleared.

"No. No! No, get off! Get off me, Winchester!"

She flung Jacob away from her, both of them panting. Lily snatched up her mask and stood, hurrying off. She flew past Rosalie, who jumped out from behind a bush in shock, camera clutched to her chest, past Hugo and Katrina, who stared and called after her, past Hunter who only pointed and giggled at her from where he was collapsed into a different bush, and around the side of the school.

Jacob stopped her though, grabbing her shoulders and turning her to face him. "Lily wait! I just had -"

"No! No, that shouldn't have happened!" she screamed at him. "I can't believe you - how could - why did -" She let out a frustrated cry. "Why won't you just leave me alone? In class, in the common room, in the corridors, at meals! You're always there! You are messing with me - with my head! You're always on my mind and I can't do anything about it! Just when I start focusing on something else, you show up and take over and I can't stop because you're different! Not just this year but overall! You're more different then anyone I know and it's weird and new but I just want it to sto-"

He cut her off by kissing her again. The haze began to set in, her mind emptying of all thought, but she was able to push him away before she lost it completely again. She slapped him, her hand stinging from the force and the cold. Jacob's face registered shock, then nothing. His head dropped as she stepped around him, walking more calmly towards the doors of the school, pulling her mask on, and knowing that he wasn't going to follow her.

She didn't think anything could go worse, but things did by the sight of the two girls that waited for her just inside the doors, arms crossed over their chests and identical smirks on their faces. Delta, dressed in black, pushed off from the wall and moved towards Lily gracefully, her gown trailing behind her. She pulled her mask away from her face and twirled it around by the stick it was on.

"Oh, poor, poor Potter," Delta sneered. "Your night is going down the drains, isn't it?"

Lyra laughed. She smooth down a wrinkle in the silk green dress she wore. "Naughty Potter. We saw you locking lips with Winchester. In looks, I must say that he's a step up from Schell, but any Gryffindor boy is a lost cause."

"Not that the girls are much better."

Delta and Lyra cackled in Lily's face. Lily clenched her fists tightly. "What do you two want now? You want to rag on me? Get me going? It's not going to work."

Lyra gasped. "What are we going to do, Del? Potter's defending herself!"

Delta grinned at something over Lily's shoulder and Lily froze when she heard a growl. The sound was so animalistic and familiar, like the animal Lily had seen in the Forest that one night. But turning, she bit her cheek from screaming when Jacob's eyes looked at her, then flickered to the other two girls. "Leave her alone," he spat.

"Go away, Winchester!"

"A lover's spat!" Delta trilled, clapping her hands together. "Oh, Lyra! They're quarrelling? What ever should we do? I know! How about I go and fetch Schell for you, Potter? I'm sure he'd just love to know what happened outside."

"Shut up, Savage!"

Lily desperately wanted to have her wand, but they had been forbidden for the night. They had been searched at the door by Neville. She guessed that it was a good idea, seeing as what she wanted to do to Delta Savage at this moment. Hexes and curses and jinxes were bouncing around in her head, pleasing images of Delta with tentacles coming out of her nose or ear hair growing every second.

"How many times to I have to tell you to back off, Delta? Lyra?"

Lily's head snapped towards the entrance to the Great Hall where Phoenix stood with Darren. Darren looked annoyed but determined to get rid of the two Slytherin girls. Delta and Lyra stared at him before Delta let out a long breath, her eyes glaring at him, her face becoming flushed. She flipped her hair back over her shoulder and pushed past him into the Great Hall, Lyra trailing after. Lyra turned back to hiss at Lily, "This isn't over, Potter."

Lily knew that it wasn't, but anytime away from Will for the rest of the ball was. She was going to go in the Great Hall and find him, apologize for disappearing on him, and not let go of him the entire time they'd dance. She was going to improve this disastrous ball. Jacob's face remained impassive as she glanced back at him once, then turned and brushed past Darren and Phoenix, ignoring Phoenix's reaching hand.

She wondered why the Slytherins always gave in whenever Darren showed up, but it was pushed to the back of her mind when she spotted Will, standing with a group of his friends, trying to participate in their conversation but glancing around the Hall every few seconds. Lily felt guilty, for his face brightened when he saw her approaching, and she knew that would not be the expression he had on if he had known what had just happened.

**XxXxX**

**Ahem...so...yeah...**

**Review please!  
**


	20. The Morning After

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, but I do own Jacob Winchester, who sometimes can be a bit of an annoying prat.**

**Morning after an interesting night at the masquerade ball. Wonder what could possibly happen?**

**XxXxX  
**

Lily had known that she was going to regret drinking the spiked punch, especially with the extra goblets she had after she had gone back to Will. She knew that she was going to feel awful in the morning, but of course she didn't care at that time. She was a 'do now and deal with consequences later' kind of person, and now it was later. She was lying on the comfy couch in the common room, early in the morning after the ball, and staring determinedly away from the fire. Her head throbbed and the light hurt her eyes, but the worst was the rolling of her stomach brought on by the smells coming from the marmalade smothered toast that a second year was eating in the armchair close to her.

Luckily, the teachers had been nice enough to give all the students the Friday morning off, meaning that Lily didn't have to go to Potions and she had until lunch to live out her horrible hangover. And most of the older students were all sleeping in meaning Lily only had to share the common room with annoying younger years.

Lily closed her eyes and massaged her forehead, groaning at the pain that was growing just above her left eyebrow.

_What a wonderful way to act on the day my grandparents were murdered,_ she thought bitterly, _Getting drunk._

She winced when the second year squeaked, but then there was the sound of their footsteps hurrying away and the receding smell of marmalade. Her stomach calmed slightly now that the food was gone, but her head hurt even more, especially when someone dropped themselves down into the chair the second year had just been in and the chair creaked noisily.

Lily moved her hand, tilting her head up just enough to see black hair.

A flash of dark blue eyes had Lily grabbing the nearest pillow to hold over her face as to block out what she knew was coming.

"That was quite the night, eh, Potter?"

"You're not here," Lily said. "You are _not_ here. Just a figment of my imagination."

Jacob chuckled. "Could your imagination do this?"

Lily braced herself, but when Jacob made no sort of move on her, she shifted the pillow only slightly away from her face to glance up.

Jacob was holding out some piece of parchment to her. It was rather crumpled and folded twice. Curiosity got the better of her. She sat up, accepting the paper hesitantly, doing everything she could to avoid touching his fingers. Unfolding the parchment, she struggled to hold her hands still when she saw the five signatures that were hastily written all over the parchment. In the center of the page was a message that was scrawled in the same handwriting as the name Calyx Flame.

_Hey Lily, hope you enjoy your night!_

Lily looked up at Jacob. "You got their autographs - for me? You? How the hell did _you _get their autographs?"

Jacob shrugged. "Winchesters are well known. Even by celebrities."

"Great, like you need more of an ego boost," Lily said. She didn't look away from the paper she held in her hands. She was worried that it would disappear if she did, or someone would attempt to steal it.

She could practically hear the smirk in Jacob's voice as he said, "So, did last night's date do anything spectacular for you? Anything that could remotely compare to getting you the autographs of your favourite Wizarding band?" Jacob scoffed at his own words. "Of course not! What was I thinking? Nothing Schell does can ever compare -"

"Stop it, Winchester."

Jacob did stop. He grinned down at her in a way that told her that he thought he was right. That he knew he was right.

Lily sighed as she stood, Jacob following, and crumpled the parchment in her fist. She kept herself from grimacing at the movement of her hand, for it physically pained her to ruin the parchment even a little. But she was so done. Done with all of Jacob's subtle _and _obvious comments. Tired of his constant jibes at Will and his constant attention on her. And she was done, overall, of having him on her mind. Her mind should have been the one place that she could escape from him, but he even managed to worm his way into there as well.

Jacob continued to stare at her brightly, until she said, "Last night…Winchester - last night never happened."

Lily took the twisting of her stomach as some sort of sick pleasure at finally being able to wipe that smile - the annoyingly satisfied smile - from Jacob's face.

Jacob's eyes shifted from hers as her fist opened. He watched as the parchment fell, crumpled into a ball, to the ground. It bounced once when it hit the carpet, rolling until it collided with the toe of Jacob's shoe. His eyes lifted to hers again, slowly, those brilliantly blues of his, and she saw confusion. She couldn't deny that he knew just how much it killed her to let that parchment out of her hands.

Jacob's black eyebrows drew together. "Lily, wha-"

"Last night did _not_ happen, Winchester!" Lily said, more impatiently this time. "You and me never went outside together, you never _judged_ me as some stuck-up, haughty person, you never told me everything you know about me and you most definitely _never kissed me_!"

Though she had been able to get rid of the smile that had been on his face, she never knew what to do about his smirks, especially this one. It was cold and mocking. His whole demeanour had suddenly changed. His shoulders moved back and his hands burrowed deep into his pockets and he kicked at the ball of parchment in front of his foot.

"I believe, Potter," he said, his words low, "that I know more about you than you think." He took a step towards her, a large step that made her back up hastily, but the back of her knees hit the couch. His voice became quiet as he leaned down close to her face. Her breath quickened. "And it was twice that I kissed you, if I remember correctly, and…" he chuckled softly, "and you seemed to _really _enjoy it."

He suddenly closed the distance between them and kissed her. He pulled back even faster, before she ever realized what had happened. But before he could stop her, she had reeled back her fist and punched him square in the nose, then stomped on his toes with her heel for good measure.

Several people behind her gasped. She ignored them. Her gaze was locked on Jacob, her vision almost red from anger and her face definitely the colour to match. Jacob didn't even look hurt, just annoyed at the blood that was now trickling in a steady stream from his nose and over his hands.

"I hate you, Winchester," Lily hissed. "I don't want you in my life and I never will. You are _nothing _to me. And I'm going out with Will tomorrow to Hogsmeade. You'll leave him alone, got it?"

Lily didn't know why she told him that she was going out with Will. She guessed it was just so she could spite him so more.

Jacob laughed bitterly. His voice was muffled through his damaged nose and all the blood. "I hope you and Schell will be happy, but I'm warning you, Potter, you're going to be severely let down. And I will be waiting."

He turned and stalked out of the common room. _Probably to visit Madam Edona, _Lily thought with a satisfied smile. She then spun around, facing all the younger years that were staring at her and whispering.

"What?" she snapped and most of them flinched. "Don't you have somewhere better to be?"

All of them fled.

Lily dropped down onto the couch again, lying down and massaging her forehead. Her headache was so much worse now. But the common room was empty and silent as she reached her hand blindly to the floor and felt around. The backs of her fingers met a ball of parchment.

She smoothed out the ball on her knee, staring at the note and signatures for a moment. She folded the paper up carefully and slipped it into her pocket, lifting the nearest pillow over her eyes again so she only saw black. Her headache lessened slightly at the silence and darkness around her.

If Jacob didn't want the parchment back, then there was no reason why she shouldn't keep it. Plus, he had to make it up to her for making her look like a fool in front of the influential younger years who worshipped her and the ground she walked on.

Lily sighed. She was beginning to sound a little too much like Phoenix.

**XxXxX**

Lily tried to concentrate that night during her study session with Darren and Aiden but it was a lost cause. Her favourite class, Defence Against the Dark Arts, had been horrible for Professor Rosewood had decided not to have a lesson that day due to the miserable expressions on everyone's faces. More than half the class had hangovers. Professor Rosewood had at first scolded them, but then she laughed, saying that teens would be teens and they had to suffer through their hangovers. The entire Defence class had then been devoted to reliving the night before to Professor Rosewood, and the ones who didn't have hangovers talking a little too loudly. Hugo and Katrina were only doing it to get on the nerves of their friends.

And now, possibly the only quiet time she ever got with Aiden and Darren - who was fast becoming one of her favourite people because he was so calm and relaxed that it was infectious - was ruined by the occupants of the table two away from Lily's. The librarian, Mr Laif, was fast asleep in his chair, his mouth lolling open and unknowing to all the noise in his library.

Lily's hand twitched towards her wand that was beside her. She was very tempted to Summon a pair of fluffy earmuffs that they often had to wear in Herbology. Neville probably wouldn't mind if she borrowed one pair.

"Aiden," Lily said, "can you please shut them up? They're mostly your friends."

Aiden looked at her helplessly, then scowled down at his Ancient Runes translation. Darren continued to cross out lines on his own translation and consult his textbook as if he was unaffected by the noise.

"How do you stand it?" Lily asked him.

Darren placed down his quill. "It's always rather noisy in the Slytherin common room. Everyone is constantly trying to one up each other by comparing their's and their parent's achievements. After six years of it, you learn to adjust to working with noise."

Lily couldn't adjust though and instead glared over at the other table that held Jacob, his nose healed but looking a little bruised; Hunter; Phoenix, who Lily guessed to be spying on Darren; Louis and to Lily's dismay, Gwen, Albus's girlfriend. Gwen appeared to be trying to calm them down and was failing miserably, giggling along with whatever they were talking about. Jacob's laugh overpowered all the others. Lily glared when he caught her staring, and he smirked back, placing his hand on Gwen's wrist and moving closer to her. Gwen quickly stopped laughing. She looked confused, pulling her hand away from Jacob and awkwardly brushing back her ginger curls. She pushed the thick textbook in front of her - Lily thought it to be the History of Magic textbook, for all the occupants of the table were all in that class - towards Jacob and pointed to a sentence.

Lily was livid. How dare he even attempt to hit on her brother's girlfriend!

"Do you mind?" she suddenly shouted. The volume of her voice made Mr Laif jerk awake, snorting and wiping his mouth.

"Miss Potter -" he said calmly, stopping to yawn. "Miss Potter, I will not deal with shouting in my library."

Lily forced herself to give the dirty look to her parchment instead of to the frail old man. She didn't need even more detentions. "No worries, sir," she said with contempt, "I'm already leaving."

She packed away her things quickly and left without a word to Aiden or Darren. It was rude, yes, but the anger was burning too much inside of Lily for her to even care. Just the sight of Jacob moving in on Gwen had Lily wanting to scream out. He was only doing it to spite her and get on her nerves. Lily smirked to herself, however, for Jacob's plan had been half ruined by Gwen pulling away from him. He was stupid enough to believe Gwen would even stray away from Albus for a single moment. Her brother and Gwen together were so cute that it made her sick to see.

"Lily, wait!"

Lily spun around. Aiden and Darren were hurrying after her, dodging a group of third years that were lingering outside the library doors.

"Six years and they still frustrate me," Aiden said, waving his back in the direction of the library. "I wasn't able to get any of my translation finished thanks to them."

Darren laughed at the identical irritated expressions on Aiden's and Lily's faces. "I don't know. Jacob can be decent at times, as can all the others. It's just when they're together that it's a little much." Darren lifted his eyes to the ceiling. "Though, Phoenix can be a bit…intense at times all on her own. And she's about as subtle as a Banshee."

This made Lily grin slightly. "So you know then that -"

"She likes me?" Darren finished, pulling the strap of his bag higher onto his shoulder. They began to climb the steps to the Gryffindor tower. "It's rather obvious, with her compliments and the constant attention. Phoenix just isn't my type, though."

Lily sent a quick look to Aiden, trying to convey to him not to tell Darren the truth. She felt bad about betraying him like that, but Phoenix had been her friend for longer. There was no way that it would be Lily who told him anyway - she hadn't been in on it, that was Louis, Rosalie and Phoenix.

Aiden sighed. He clearly got the message. "So, why isn't she your type? She's good-looking enough."

"Bloody gorgeous," Darren corrected him. "But she goes through people like they're tissues - throws them away after she's used them. I'm just not into that. Flings are pointless to me, yet, those are the things that she's most renown for. I don't think anyone can forget about the girl who had to transfer to Beauxbatons because she couldn't stand to see Phoenix anymore."

"You've been spending a lot of time with her lately, though!" Lily protested.

Darren nodded. "I know. Pretty much since I saw her stand up to those - my fellow Slytherins. I can respect her more now because I saw that. I could just never date her because of her reputation."

Lily's mind was suddenly jolted away from their current conversation and to a new topic entirely.

"The Slytherins," she muttered. "Hey, Darren, how come Delta and them always back off from people when you tell them to? You always show up just in time and they just…retreat."

Aiden considered the idea himself then looked over at Darren. Darren was suddenly looking sheepish. They stopped in front of the portrait of the Fat lady, who stared at them, waiting. Darren scuffed his shoe on the hard floor and ruffled the back of his curly hair.

"Honestly?" he asked with a slight grin, as if hoping that they would say no.

"No luck, mate," Aiden said, clapping him on the shoulder. "I'm curious as well. Spit it out."

Darren glanced between them, then threw his hands up. "Alright. Truthfully, I mostly try to keep an eye on you, Lily. You must know that you're their favourite target." Lily nodded. She did know it. "And they always seem to get this look on their faces - well, Delta does - and I know that they're going after someone. But it's difficult to explain why they always stop when I tell them to." He turned his gaze to his shoulder where his hand was playing with the strap of his bag. "I guess it's because in the summer before fifth year, they were all at my house to see Willow. Delta, Lyra, Kaelan, Hiro - they were all there. They had been holed up in Willow's room for most of the afternoon and when I went to get them for dinner, I heard them talking about something."

"What?" Lily and Aiden asked at the same time.

Darren shrugged. "That's just it - I don't know. They were being really quiet and whispering, but as soon as I opened the door, they stopped. They looked horrified, as if I heard them planning to kill my grandmother or something." He sighed. "I think that they think I won't tell anyone what they were talking about if they listen to me. I have no idea what it was though! All I know is that, since that night, Willow has become even more quiet and secretive then she ever was. And I think - hope, really - that she's trying to distance herself from the group of them so she doesn't have to be a part of whatever they're planning."

"So, basically," Aiden said, "they think that you…have blackmail over them? Whatever they're doing has to be terrible enough that they would be afraid of it getting out."

Lily bit her lip. "I wish I knew what it as. I'd love to take those damn Slytherins down a notch or two."

Daren looked at her. "I wouldn't let you until I knew my sister was safe," he said fiercely.

The intensity of his voice shocked her, but it was also so familiar. He sounded like James and Albus whenever they stood up for Lily against others. Though the line "only we get to tease her," normally followed with her brothers, it was clear that Darren wasn't ever going to say anything like that. He was genuinely worried about Willow and what she was getting herself into. Lily felt her respect for Darren increase immensely.

"Okay, Darren, I was just saying," Lily told him gently.

Darren's look was awkward. "Sorry," he said hastily. "I just get…overprotective when it comes to Willow. It's just - er - never mind. Night, you two."

And he hurried away, descending the steps from the Gryffindor portrait entrance and down to where the Slytherin common room was located in the dungeons.

Lily turned to Aiden with a pleading look. Did she just make Darren mad at her?

Aiden took hold of her arm lightly. "_Foolish_," he said to the Fat Lady. She had changed the password when she found out about the spiked punch at the ball.

"Yes, you are," she said.

Aiden helped Lily through the portrait hole and into the common room, where they collapsed at one of the tables and began to pull out the rest of their homework.

"Aiden!" Lily pleaded.

"Just," Aiden began, flipping open his Transfiguration textbook, "just be nicer to Willow, Lily. I'm not saying you're mean to her!" he added quickly at her look. "Willow is obviously a sensitive topic with Darren. Just make things easier for him."

Lily nodded, but muttered, "When are things ever that easy?"

**XxXxX**

**So many problems in Hogwarts. **

**Anyways, review please! Always appreciated!  
**


	21. The Ruined Date

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

**Sooooooo...two days until Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part One! So friggin excited! Anyone else going to see it?**

**XxXxX**

"Would you stop already?" Rosalie snapped.

Lily glared at the blond from where she was bent over her trunk, trying to find a jacket that she could wear. It was getting colder everyday, and of course, the day of the Hogsmeade trip and Lily's date with Will, had to be the coldest of them all. Lily had first planned to wear just a sweater, but waking up that morning, shivering beneath her covers of her bed because the window had been left open, had changed her mind. But now there was no jacket in her trunk that wouldn't have to make her change her clothes.

"Seriously!" Rosalie said, lifting herself off her bed and flipping open her own trunk. "You're preening worse then Phoenix right now."

Phoenix glanced up from where she was seated cross legged in the middle of her bed, scrutinizing her makeup in a mirror she held. "What? I'm going out with Darren today so I need to look good! Do I look good? Maybe I should have used the purple instead of the gold. I think the purple would have made my eyes look more purple too."

Lily stopped, a jacket dangling in her hand. "You're going on a date with Darren?" Lily couldn't believe it. Just yesterday, Darren had said that he wouldn't date her. What had changed his mind so quickly?

"I'm not going to lose this bet?" Rosalie asked, handing a white leather jacket to Lily. "Here, wear this."

Alice snorted. "Stupid bet," she muttered.

"No," Phoenix said, pouting. "Darren still refuses to _date _me. But he's fine with hanging out, so I think if we do hang out together enough then he'll see that I'm not so bad and then he will love to date me…before January of course."

Lily decided to not tell Phoenix that Darren didn't want to date her because of her commitment issues. It was only fair after not having told Darren about the bet.

Lily left the other girls in the dorm. She descended the stairs and stopped in the common room, looking around. She grinned when she saw Will lifting himself out of one of the armchairs and smoothing down his jacket. Unlike the nerves that were building up inside Lily, Will looked calm, excited even, as he sauntered up to Lily and grinned down at her. His hand reached towards her, palm up.

"You look good," he said. "Really good."

Lily felt like a mess. "Thanks," she said instead. "Shall we go?"

She placed her hand in his, calmly slightly when his fingers wrapped around hers. From across the common room, Roxanne gave Lily a thumbs up before she ducked out the portrait hole with a group of her friends.

The Entrance Hall was packed with all of the other students that were heading to Hogsmeade. Black carriages were lined up outside, pulled by invisible horses that Lily knew to be Thestrals. The third years, still new to the experience of Hogsmeade, were attempting to push themselves to the front of the line to the carriages, but older students shoved them back with annoyed noises.

The line to the carriages was the longest Lily had ever seen. _Of course_ it just had to be on the weekend of her date with Will, and even worse, her hand, from where it was trapped inside Will's, was growing sweaty. Would he be disgusted by her sweaty hand?

Maybe she should just show Will that secret passage to Hogwarts…

But she didn't need to, for Will winked down at her and pulled her along. They ducked through the crowd, stopping only when they were behind three boys that towered over Lily, their backs turned to her. She could easily tell that they were Will's friends, Logan Thames, Gavin Wright and Sebastian Peterson. They all smiled knowingly when Will asked if they could share a carriage with them. Lily grimaced, but in no time, they were piled inside a carriage, Lily stuck between Will and Sebastian uncomfortably.

She gripped the knees of her jeans when Sebastian threw an arm around her heavily, leaned closer and pointed at Will. "Just yell out and attract people's attention if he does anything, Potter," Sebastian said with a grin. "Our Willie hates an audience."

"Mate!" Will exclaimed, pushing his arm away from Lily. "Could you not?"

"Come _on_, Will!" Gavin laughed. "You come into our carriage with your pretty little date and you expect us to sit here quietly?"

"Not going to happen," Logan said simply, crossing his arms over his chest.

Gavin nodded, pleased that Logan agreed with him.

"Plus," Sebastian added, nudging Lily with his shoulder, "if you're going to end up dating our mate here, Potter, you better get use to us because we never leave him alone. At the Quidditch game next week, those guys you hear cheering louder than others - that will be us. Don't know why you even put him on the team. As soon as Will steps onto the pitch and sees everyone, he's going to freeze up." Sebastian imitated Will freezing, not moving, staring ahead like a deer caught in headlights.

"Bas!" Will said more angrily.

Lily found herself laughing. Will's friends reminded her so much of the boys in her year. As soon as the carriage stopped, Will grabbed Lily's hand again and heaved her out of the carriage. Stumbling behind him, she glanced back and waved with a grin when the other three boys smiled wickedly after them.

"Hates an audience?" Lily questioned as soon as they were rounding the corner onto High Street, and the familiar sounds of Hogsmeade began to surround them. She pulled Rosalie's jacket tighter around her, the leather cold on her fingers. "Willie?"

"Don't listen to them," Will said gruffly, lifting his hand that wasn't holding Lily's to smooth down his hair when a gust of frigid wind hit them. His cheeks were red; she couldn't tell if it was from embarrassment or the cold. "They were just saying all of that stuff to look cool in front of you. It's what they do. Gits."

Lily shrugged, though Will did not see the move from where he was a few steps in front of her, leading her forwards. "I thought they were funny, actually. Friends tease you, it's their job. You can't tell me they've never done it before."

This time, Will shrugged. Lily didn't know what to make of it.

"How about we go to Weasleys' to warm up a bit and browse, Honeydukes, then to the Three Broomsticks?" he said instead, turning to look at her.

Lily nodded, slipping around him and through the door to her Uncle's shop that he held open for her. She instantly knew Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes was the wrong place to be with a boy when George Weasley himself was working that day. She hastily turned around, pressing her hands against Will's chest, trying to push him back. "How about we just go to Honeydukes? I own some of practically everything in this shop, so I'm all stocked up. Okay, let's -"

"Knew I'd see you sooner or later."

Lily turned slowly, facing Uncle George. Uncle George, a large hole where his right ear once was, stared down at her, his brown eyes lined with years of loss. She was often told that he never truly got over the death of his twin, her Uncle Fred, but he could cover the fact perfectly most of the time.

"Er - uh - hi, Uncle George," Lily said. "Will and I were just -"

"Leaving?" Uncle George asked. "I don't think so. Will, did you say? Well, Will, come here, will you? I want to show you some of my newest products."

Will's eyes were wide. He glanced quickly down at Lily, she scowled but nodded to him, then moved towards Uncle George. Will was an inch or two taller than Uncle George, but was clearly intimidated, nonetheless. Several other customers moved out of the way, giggling, as Uncle George led a nervous looking Will and a reluctant Lily towards the back of the shop and behind the counter there. From the counter, he slid a box off the stack beside it and placed it down in front of Will.

Lily immediately groaned when Uncle George drew out a smaller box from the larger one and opened it. Inside were many round, multicoloured balls, looking almost exactly like gumballs, except for the two miniscule Cs that were on them.

"These," Uncle George told Will, "are what I like to call Cheater Catchers. If someone feeds you one of these, great pimples will break out all over your body, spelling out the word 'Cheater'. It doesn't matter if it was a test you cheated on, or a girl - it will identify you as a cheater. And now this," he waved a spray bottle in front of them, "is a Divulging Spray. Point and spray at someone and they'll begin to reveal every single one of their secrets. Like whether or not they did what they told their girlfriends, or if they are being faithful. You look nervous, William, there's no need for that."

"Uncle George!" Lily grasped Will's wrist and pulled him away from her uncle, who was grinning as if Christmas had come early. "I think we've seen enough of your new products, thanks."

"Just displaying the goods, dear niece," he replied.

Lily rolled her eyes. "We're leaving now. You can grill Roxanne's boyfriend with your products. And by the way, his full name is Willard, not William. Come on, Will."

Will moved eagerly with Lily towards the doors of Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, but Uncle George's face had been filled with shock as they turned away. "Roxanne has a boyfriend?" he called after them. Lily didn't answer him. No, Roxanne didn't have a boyfriend, but Uncle George deserved to sweat over the thought.

In Honeydukes, Lily bought heaps of Chocolate Frogs and Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans. Will followed behind her like a shadow, his hands in the pockets of his jackets, not speaking as Lily handed a few sickles to the woman at the cash.

"Will, let's go to The Three Broomsticks. Butterbeer sounds good right now." Lily said to him, gently. When he didn't respond, Lily grabbed his elbow and pulled him along with her towards the pub across the road. Inside The Three Broomsticks, Lily got them some Butterbeers and sat at the table with Will. "Don't even worry about it. Uncle George would never actually use those products on you. He was just…joking around. Or warning you to be careful with me. Either way, he was just testing you. You didn't talk, so I guess you did fine."

Will took a slow drink, the red in his cheeks fading. "Merlin, that was awful," he finally said. "Your uncle is rather scary."

"He's the scariest," she said encouragingly, though it was a complete lie. There were scarier in her family. Like Grandma Weasley, Uncle Percy, Lucy and Aunt Hermione when she was ranting. "It only gets better from here."

"I should have done more. I should have actually denied that I would ever do those things. You must be embarrassed."

Lily wasn't embarrassed. She was annoyed, yes, that Will was continuing to mope, but she was not embarrassed. "It's _fine_. Just…tell me, what did your friends mean earlier when they said that you hate attention? Is that why you never tried out for the team before, because you didn't want people watching you?"

Will nodded, looking grateful for the change of topic. "I don't hate attention, I just don't like a lot of it. I'm fine with it if I can focus on something, which I will be during the match, but it's just like if I'm called upon in class, I burn up like a flame and stutter like an idiot. And then that is more embarrassing then acting like a fool in front of your Uncle."

"I'd enjoy seeing that."

Will laughed. Lily drained her Butterbeer and stood up. "I'm going to get another one, do you want one?"

Will quickly dug in his pocket. "I've got this round," he said, giving her a galleon.

Lily moved towards the bar, but stopped when the door to the pub opened and a flash of red caught her eye. Katrina and Hugo entered, all smiles and warmth, Katrina encased in Hugo's long right arm. She was blushing to the roots of her hair and her glasses were perched precariously on the top of her head. They didn't seem to notice Lily as they moved in her direction, too involved in each other.

"So are you finally admitting now that you're dating?" Lily asked.

Hugo's head snapped up, a loud crack being emitted. Hugo, Lily and Katrina all grimaced at the sound. Katrina stared at Lily, the blush now extending down her neck. Hugo rubbed the back of his neck, both in pain and a gesture of awkwardness.

"Oh come on!" Lily laughed. "You two are out on your own looking like…like - uh - Albus and Gwen! Oh God, please no! I can't stand another totally in love, starry eyed, trip over my feet - run into your arms sort of couple!"

Hugo looked dazed at Lily's exclamation, but Katrina grinned. "Alright, Lily, you win, okay? I'm dating your cousin. I admit it. And we're not…" she blushed brilliantly. "We're not like Albus and Gwen."

Lily smirked. "Not yet, at least."

Katrina bit her lip. Hugo looked as if he wanted to say something, but at that moment, the door of the pub open again, this time with a loud crash as the door hit the wall. Quinn Mercado stood in the doorway, panting heavily, her long brown hair wild and a red knit hat on her head, a large pom pom on the crown.

"Lily!" she cried, looking relieved. "Now! You've got to come with me now! And you two!" she added, bounding up to Hugo and Katrina. She seized the back of Hugo's jacket and began pulling him towards the doorway, him stumbling backwards, exclaiming for her to let him go. Katrina followed, looking worried at the manic, nervous look on Quinn's face. Lily spun around and quickly waved her hand when she saw Will staring at her.

"We gotta go, Will!" she called.

Will was out of his seat in a second and at her side. "What's going on?" he asked.

"I don't know, but come on!"

Lily grabbed his hand and hurried out the still open door of the pub, many eyes staring after them. Katrina, Hugo and Quinn were already far ahead of them and running full out across the paths of Hogsmeade. Lily swore when she stepped on something that cracked under her foot, the thing having been Katrina's glasses, which must have fallen off her head while she ran. They turned off High Street, following after Quinn's red hat in the distance. It was then that Lily began to hear the noises. Great shouts, jeers and bangs were coming from one of the empty parts of the village, far from where any teachers or citizens would come to stop whatever was happening.

"We're heading to the Shrieking Shack!" Will said, gasping for breath as they ran up a hill. Just over the hill, in an area devoid of anything except the rundown building, was a group of people. Hugo had pulled himself from Quinn's grasp and thrown himself into the fight with gusto, Katrina and Quinn both lagging behind. Just off to the side of the many people brawl were two blonds, one much smaller than the other. Alice was hugging Alex, who looked to be sobbing, his face red and his hands bloodstained. With them was Aiden who was bent over, examining Alex's knee with an irritated look. Jacob, Hunter and Louis were taking on Kaelan, Hiro and two other Slytherin boys, while Delta and Lyra were sending curses and hexes into the fight, but all were just bouncing off. Katrina and Rosalie had their wands out, Katrina performing what looked like a Protection Charm and Rosalie jinxing Delta. Delta left Lyra to try to curse the boys and instead focused her attention on Rosalie with an annoyed shriek.

"Will!" Lily shook his arm. "Do something! Help!"

Will glanced down at her, then shed his coat and moved into the fight, elbowing his way past one of the other Slytherin boys. He hauled Hiro and a Slytherin off of Louis, sending Hiro tumbling to the side, jarring Katrina in the legs. She fell, kicking at him as he grabbed onto her ankle, but Hugo was quickly on top of him. Katrina's charm had been broken when her concentration drifted and Lyra squealed gleefully when one of her curses hit Louis directly in the chest. Lily gasped as Louis flew back a few feet, skidding to a stop in the mud, his eyes closed and unmoving.

"Louis!" Alice screamed, tearing herself away from Alex and Aiden.

Lily hurried to take her place, Alex's bloody hands grabbing onto her shirt, ruining it, as she sunk down beside him. Alex's knees were torn and gushing blood, rocks and dirt embedded in the torn skin. Lily hugged him from behind, her one hand rubbing his back to sooth his pained sobs. Aiden was cleaning the wound with a few charms, wiping the blood away with the sleeve of his coat.

As he conjured bandages from thin air, Lily asked, "What the hell is going on here?" just as a red hex flew over their heads and hit a tree.

"They attacked Alex," Aiden snapped, the knuckles of his hand clutching his wand white. "Jacob told Alex how to get to Hogsmeade through some stupid secret passage, and the Slytherins caught him as he was heading towards the village where he was told to meet us."

"We need to get him up to the hospital wing, Louis too!" Lily said hurriedly, panic surging through her as Alex cried out when Aiden began to carefully wrap the bandages around his knees. "You're going to _kill him_, Jacob!"

Lily couldn't even both cursing herself for calling him by his first name. But she had turned her head slightly to see Jacob sitting on Kaelan's chest, the other boy's arms trapped underneath Jacob's legs. Jacob was repeatedly hitting his fists into Kaelan's face, blood pouring from his nose and his mouth full of blood, dribbling out the side. Kaelan was unconscious.

Jacob paused, his fist still raised, his face turning in her direction. Blood dripped from his knuckles, though he didn't seem to notice. His blue eyes were black, rage filling his face. Lily was about to cry out a warning, but Jacob had already rolled to the side, off of Kaelan, just as Hiro threw himself at Jacob, missing him only by an inch. Lyra set a hex flying at Jacob, but he just dodged it. He launched himself at her, knocking her to the ground with a terrified scream. There was the sound of something snapping and Lily was worried for a moment until she heard the blond shriek, "You broke my wand, you blood traitor!"

At that moment, the same time that Rosalie yelled out in pain, the sound of something terrible cracking rising over the grunts from those still fighting, there was a call of, "What is going _on _here? Stop it! All of you - stop it!"

Lily quickly held Alex closer to her as if she could hide him against her as Professor Rosewood, Professor Scarta and Hagrid came running over the hill. Professor Rosewood was pale as her eyes took in the scene, everyone momentarily frozen at the arrival of the teachers and the large, intimidating form of Hagrid.

Within seconds, Professor Scarta had everyone marching behind him up to the school, Hagrid at the back, making sure everyone followed. Hunter and Jacob supported the limp body of Louis between them, Alice fluttering nervously around them. Alex leaned against Lily, limping and sniffing tearfully. Will was at his side, looking annoyed and frustrated, his coat in his hand but dragging on the ground behind him. Katrina and Hugo were with Rosalie, whose arm looked to be broken, while Delta walked on the opposite side of Professor Rosewood, a satisfied smirk on her face. Professor Rosewood separated the Slytherins from the Gryffindors, Quinn walking with her, explaining what she had come across and what exactly had happened.

Lily glanced back at the Shrieking Shack just in time to see Willow Clowes slip out from the forest beside the path they walked on. Her eyes met Lily's from where the black-haired girl had stopped near the tree with the charred trunk, and a fearful look spread across her face as she flicked her eyes over towards the Slytherins.

_I'm sorry_, Willow mouthed.

**XxXxX**

Lily sat by Louis's bed in the hospital wing. Louis, Alex, Kaelan and Rosalie had been immediately brought there when they reached the castle, while all the others had disappeared up the marble staircases with Professors Rosewood and Scarta towards Professor McGonagall's office. Lily, Will, Katrina and Hugo had been off the hook, for Quinn explained that she had gone to get them after the fight had already started and they were only trying to stop it. Hugo was sporting a black eye that Madam Edona patted at carefully with some orange paste.

"Sorry that our date didn't exactly go as planned," Lily said. She picked at Louis's bedding, in which her cousin was passed out, her eyes focused on Alex's closed eyes in the next bed. Madam Edona had given him a Sleeping Potion as soon as she completely bandaged his cut knees again so he wouldn't have to feel the pain while they healed.

"Yeah," Will grunted. "I hadn't planned on getting into a fight."

"It was impressive though," she said weakly.

Will looked at her just as she lifted her eyes to his. "I'm sorry," she said again, "but this might actually happen a lot. The guys…they like fighting, I guess. Slytherins are their most favourites."

"Lily, are you -" Will shook his head, "- are you warning me?"

Lily nodded. "Well, just in case you don't want to be protecting my friends all the time in fights, then it might not be a good idea if -"

"If we date?" he supplied, then grinned down at her. "I'll do it. If getting in fights and defending others that I barely know comes with dating you, then I'll do it. Even though the end of our date was a disaster - and the beginning - it was still kind of fun. I want to know what a normal date would be like with you. Without scary uncles or bloody knuckles."

"Seriously?"

"Seriously."

He bent to kiss her then, his lips just brushing hers. Lily tried to ignore the fact that it had been only yesterday that she was last kissed, and not by Will. Will's kiss was more controlled than the one she had with Jacob, but she enjoyed it. She rather liked that she could still make sense of things around her when Will's mouth pressed harder against hers and his hand moved to her neck.

"Oh, ew. That's not something I enjoy waking up to."

Lily broke away from Will hastily, turning her head to see Louis scowling.

The doors of the hospital wing opened and everyone began piling in, closely monitored by Professor Scarta. There were glares and hisses exchanged across the room but no Slytherin or Gryffindor moved towards each other. Kaelan was still passed out in his bed, the five Slytherins gathering around him. Jacob continued walking as Hunter stopped at Rosalie's bed, gently taking her arm into his hands, the cast securing it until her bones could fix themselves.

Jacob was glaring as he moved past Louis's bed and sat down at the end of Alex's. His eyes weren't focused on the Slytherins though, or even Will. No, he was glaring at Lily with such an intensity that it made her nervous. Will was quick to turn his own glare on Jacob and put his arm around Lily's shoulders. He continued to stare at her, his eyebrows drawn together, his mouth twisted in a sneer.

"Come on," she said to Will quietly, "we've visited long enough. And I could use some lunch right now. We can see if your friends are back, too."

Will nodded, his eyes not leaving Jacob's as he stood with her.

As they were leaving, Willow moved into the empty doorway, wringing her hands together. "I _had_ to run to get the teachers," she said quickly, in a quiet voice, "it wasn't right letting them hurt that boy. You understand, don't you?"

And without another word, Willow entered the hospital wing and rushed to Kaelan's bedside.

"That was weird," Will commented.

"Yeah..." Lily said. But it wasn't really. She thought back on what Darren had said to her yesterday.

Was Willow really trying to distance herself from the Slytherins?

**XxXxX**

**So, I've realized that I'm kind of addicted to commas. **

**Anyways, sorry this chapter is later than usual.**

**Review please!**


	22. Discovery

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, but I will own Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part One as soon as it comes out on Blu-ray**

**So, saw Harry Potter...Oh My Dumbledore! It was so amazing! Far better than I expected! I was crying so much in it and laughing quite a lot, which I actually didn't expect. Favourite scene was definitely either (for those of you who have seen it) George in the kitchen or Harry and Hermione dancing (I'm strictly a canon shipper, so it was a very cute sort of brotherly-sisterly thing for me. Plus, Harry was just so dang awkward when he danced!)**

**What did you think of it? And if you haven't seen it, then go NOW!**

**Anyways, this is the chapter you've all been waiting for! Enjoy!  
**

**XxXxX  
**

Louis was released from the hospital four days after the attack on Alex. All the others were quick to inform him on what had happened since he had been passing in and out of consciousness for the past few days. Lyra's curse had done quite a number on him that he had only been able to stay awake for a few minutes before he passed right back out again.

Quinn had told Professor McGonagall the whole story on what had happened. Lily was thankful that the Hufflepuff girl had left out Alex's name when she said that the Slytherins attacked a Gryffindor. Quinn had been heading to the Shrieking Shack almost the instant that the Slytherins ambushed Alex, and she had ran to get the first people she came across, which had been Jacob and Hunter. Quinn said that all the Gryffindors were trying to help their housemate, not just picking a fight with Slytherins, but Professor McGonagall had still issued detentions on Jacob, Hunter and Louis for actually being in the physical fight.

The Slytherins, however - Delta, Lyra, Kaelan, Hiro and the other two boys - were given two months worth of Saturday detentions, as well as a two week in-school suspension. This meant that they all were locked in a classroom all day, doing the work that teachers had assigned to their classes that day, and eating their meals in the room as well, only leaving to go to the bathroom, which they had to be escorted to. At the beginning and end of everyday, they were brought to and from the classroom by their Head of House, Professor Rabidus, who had, for a moment, lost his senile old man attitude to rant and rave at the Slytherins when he was told of what happened. Though, he was still seen every morning commenting brightly on the kind of day it was outside, ignorant to the miserable looks on his students' faces.

"'Bout time they got what was coming to them!" Louis exclaimed happily.

"Still wish I could have finished off Goyle," Jacob muttered.

Lily had taken care to seat herself as far away from Jacob as possible whenever they were in classes or down at meals. He had been especially bitter since that attack, and at first everyone assumed that it had been for the Slytherins attempting to attack Alex just to get back at them, but it was soon made clear that it wasn't that.

More often then not, Lily was able to catch Jacob glaring at her, seeming to not notice that he was, for when she caught his eye, he looked away quickly, rearranging his face until he was able to look at her again with his usual cocky smirk. If it was bad enough having him glare at her, Lily felt awful for Will who was receiving the worst of it. When the two males passed each other in the corridors or any other time, especially when Will was touching Lily, Jacob looked murderous. She had expected this behaviour from Jacob when she thought of herself dating Will, but she never thought that he would look as if he wanted to kill the other boy or ripe off his hands when they were only on Lily's shoulders or waist.

Unable to take much more of the glaring, Lily had cornered Hunter after classes on Monday. He had been surprised, but quickly reverberated back to his lazy stance against the wall, a red Sugar Quill dangling from his mouth.

"Why do I have the pleasure as to be jumped by Lily Potter?" he asked. Several people exiting the class gave them looks as they passed, but Lily looked inside the room quickly to see that her Severing Charm on Jacob's bag had worked. He now lagged inside, cursing colourfully as he picked up his scattered books. He hastily stuffed a thin, leather bound book into his bag, his face momentarily panicked.

"You of all people have to know why Jacob keeps giving me and Will those dirty looks," she said quickly. "And don't just say 'because you and Will are dating' for I've already heard that from Aiden. Just tell me because I can't take much more of it!"

Hunter bit his teeth together on his Sugar Quill, grinding them back and forth so the Quill bounced up and down. He looked thoughtful, a hand raking through his messy hair. Then he shrugged. "No idea, honestly. I'm as clueless as you are. Jake's said nothing. Except that he keeps muttering about getting Kaelan Goyle."

"I _know_ he despises Goyle!" Lily snapped impatiently.

Hunter shook his head, a condescending look on his face as he picked his Sugar Quill out of his mouth and waved it in front of her face. "No, Potter. It's more serious than that. He _hates _Goyle. I think the git said something to Jake before the fight, because that's basically how it was brought to Muggle tricks. Goyle said something, as if he was talking to himself - that's how quiet it was - but Jake heard him and you should have seen his face. He was _pissed_."

"But he hasn't told you what Goyle said?"

"No! And why should Jake bother telling me anything lately? Really, I'm just his best mate and all, there's no need to tell me what is tearing him up from the inside, what deep dark secret he's keeping," Hunter said resentfully. "No, I really don't _need _to know at all. Oh, and here comes the bastard himself."

Lily glanced over her shoulder quickly. Jacob was exiting the classroom now, carrying his torn bag underneath his arm.

Lily turned quickly back to Hunter. "Don't push him, okay?" she asked quickly, wondering why these words were escaping her mouth. "Drop hints that you're worried, but don't get him angry - we don't need anymore of that."

"Why do you care so much?"

Lily began moving away as Jacob approached them. "I don't know."

**XxXxX**

Rosalie yawned loudly in Defence Against the Dart Arts the next morning.

They were now dealing with non-verbal spells, which was boring compared to the past lessons they had been having about Patronuses and Dementors, especially after Professor Rosewood had brought the Dementor into class. Lily was glad for the subject changed though; Jacob had not stopped reminding her about their Patronuses at every chance he could get and she was still the butt of current jokes from Rosalie a Phoenix.

Now however, a silvery lion was making its way through the classroom towards Lily, rubbing up against her legs. Professor Rosewood looked amused but turned sternly at Jacob, who ended his Patronus Charm and grinned innocently back at her.

Lily took the time of Rosalie's yawn to whisper a spell under her breath and send a jet of water shooting at the blond.

Rosalie shrieked. Many people looked over to see what the commotion was about and Lily only laughed, brushing off the dark look Rosalie was sending her.

"Sorry, sorry," Lily laughed and dried Rosalie off with another spell. "But you're just lucky it was warm water. I was thinking about using cold. It would definitely wake you up. Why are you so tired anyways?"

"Just didn't sleep well," Rosalie shrugged. "Maybe I should just dunk myself into a bath of cold water. I don't know if I can make it through the rest of the lessons today."

"Why didn't you sleep well?"

Rosalie twisted her wand in her hand distractedly. "Well, Lily - uh...I was so drunk at the ball last week, remember? And I found the pictures from the ball in my clutch last night and -"

Lily didn't find out what the pictures were though, for at that moment, Hunter hissed, unaware that Rosalie was just telling Lily probably something important, "Hey, _Valentine_!" under his breath as Professor Rosewood passed by where he and Jacob were practicing their non-verbal spells. "I know where you can get a large amount of cold water to throw yourself into."

Rosalie stared at him suspiciously while Lily glared. "I swear, Payne, if this is one of your disgusting jokes then we don't -"

"It's rude to interrupt, Lily, love," Jacob jokingly scolded.

"Don't call me that!"

"So, Valentine. Would you object to taking a swim in the lake?" Hunter asked.

Lily's jaw dropped. "The lake? Are you insane? It's November!"

"You could catch hypothermia!" Alice added.

"Madam Edona could fix you up in an instant," Hunter said to her. "So, are you up to it? Or you can be like Lily and Alice right now - afraid."

"_Hey!_" Lily snapped.

"Is this a challenge, Hunter?" Rosalie asked, a wicked look filling her eyes and a smirk crossing her face.

Lily knew that no matter what was said now, Rosalie would definitely be taking a dip in the frigid water of the lake. It seemed to Lily that Hunter was able to rile Rosalie up just as much as Jacob could to her, but Rosalie enjoyed it. She loved the competitions and challenges Hunter threw at her but she loved showing him up even more. And the look Rosalie was sending her made it known to Lily that they both were absolutely going to be involved in this latest challenge.

It seemed to be the excitement of proving to Hunter that she wasn't afraid that kept Rosalie going throughout the day. Rosalie had been able to produce one non-verbal spell by the end of the lesson and she brewed a perfect Hiccuping Solution that left Professor Rabidus incapable of speech, for half-way through every word he gave a hard hiccup.

Finally, the last lesson ended and Aiden and Lily left the Ancient Runes classroom to head down to the lake where they had all planned to meet. Aiden had said repeatedly throughout the lesson that he was not going to go into the freezing water and instead would wait by the shore, ready to quickly dry off the others as they climbed out of the lake. Lily wasn't afraid to go into the lake, she just didn't see the appeal in it and would rather avoid it if she could. She would attempt to stay with Aiden, but, knowing Rosalie, Lily was going to go into the lake one way or another.

Outside, the grass was green and scattered with leaves from the trees, golds, reds, purples. The sky was clear, a light, misty shade of blue, but still Lily was able to see her breath in the air ahead of her. The lake rippled in the gentle wind, distorting the reflections of the trees near the lake. The great slab of reflective black rock was tall, imposing, and hauntingly beautiful in the center of the lake on its own little island, surrounded by perfect green grass and everlasting flowers sprouting up around the base. On top of the rock was a phoenix carved out of pure gold, its wings outstretched, its tail feathers long and creeping around the rock like vines, while its head was held high, golden beak open. This was the War Monument. Constructed after the Second Wizarding War, the flat black front of it flashed with the faces of the dead, moving images that grinned and laughed in vivid colours, while underneath the constantly changing faces were many names carved into the stone. At that moment, the face of a young, handsome Sirius Black winked at Lily from across the grounds.

When they reached the lake's shoreline, they found the others all waiting there, shivering, apprehensive and excited. Rosalie and Hunter were staring each other down, standing so close to the water that it lapped at their heels. Jacob, Louis and Hugo were gathered by a tree nearby while Phoenix and Alice tried to warm each up by standing close together and rubbing each others arms. Katrina moved forwards to greet the two of them as they approached.

"Thank goodness you're here now. Those two -" she gestured at Rosalie and Hunter, "- haven't said a word since we got here and have just been doing that. Let's just get this idiotic idea over with so I can go inside. I have lots of homework to do and I still have to write a letter to my mother."

"Who's all going in?" Aiden asked.

"Them, of course," Katrina motioned to Rosalie and Hunter again. "Louis said he would, Phoenix put up a good fight but she's going in anyways. Louis forbid Alice to go in, saying she was easily the smallest out of all of us and would probably die because of the cold."

Lily narrowed her eyes at Louis and then glanced at Alice. Lily was most definitely shorter than Alice.

"Hugo and I are watching over this _Huntalie _competition to see who lasts the longest because I am most definitely not going into that water."

"Huntalie?" Lily asked while Aiden roared with laughter.

"Hunter - Rosalie," Katrina explained with a wave of her hand. "Rosalie said that it was stupid to combine their names but Hunter only said that it was way to girly for his taste. Anyways, Jacob only said he was going in if you were going in."

"Of course," Lily huffed.

Aiden patted her shoulder sympathetically, though she knew he was still laughing. "So how is this happening?" he asked. "Is everyone just going to strip down and run in or what?"

Rosalie finally broke her stare-off with Hunter. "Might as well just run in with our clothes still on. You can dry us off after so we don't, as Alice said, catch hypothermia." She began tying her long hair back. "So, are we ready to do this?"

"One - two - three - GO!" Hunter yelled quickly and before anyone knew what happened he had ran straight into the lake and dove under the surface. Rosalie cursed loudly and hurried after, dipping below the surface just as Hunter came up for air. His lips were already turning blue but he glanced around excitedly for Rosalie, his eyebrows drawing together when he didn't see her. A surprised look crossed his face just before he was pulled under again.

Aiden, Katrina, Hugo and Alice all hurried to the edge of the lake, watching as Rosalie and Hunter fought in the water, staying far out and becoming paler and paler. Louis patted Alice's shoulder as he more calmly slipped into the water, shivering as he did. Jacob unceremoniously pushed Phoenix in as she hesitated near the edge. He turned to look expectantly at Lily as she shifted from foot to foot.

Lily sighed, annoyed, and only thought that, though she was going to be miserable coming out of this, at least Winchester was going to suffer as well.

She pulled off her shoes as Jacob began stripping off his robe and jumper. She stood, slipping off her robe as well and grabbed roughly onto the collar of Jacob's shirt. "Come on, Winchester, I don't want to be out here forever."

But as she pulled on his shirt she heard a popping sound and felt something small hit her in the back of the head. Turning, she saw that she had pulled too harshly and the buttons on the top half of his shirt had ripped off. The fabric drooped on his right shoulder and Lily quickly let go, the shirt falling down even further. Jacob hastily pulled his shirt back on properly and began turning away, heading for his jumper but Lily stopped him.

Something had caught her eye just as he had been fixing his shirt again. Something that made her breath catch and her heart beat faster. Something that made her think that she was about to find out what was wrong with Jacob the past year.

Jacob did nothing as Lily pushed the shoulder of his shirt aside again, but his form was tense and stiff as he waited, seemingly not breathing.

There, covering the entire expanse of his shoulder, was shining white scars that almost made the shape of a long mouth - like a dog or something close. Two of the scars were larger than the rest and looked as if whatever had left the scar had first dug into Jacob's skin and pulled, leaving gruesome two lines. It was clear that the scar was a bite mark, but it was larger than her hand, even with her fingers spread wide over it. Her fingers dipped into the indents of the bite, showing just how deep of a bite it had been.

His skin was burning beneath her hand.

Her eyes caught his as she looked up, hers wide with shock and his dark and guarded.

"Rosie!" Alice exclaimed, suddenly pulling Jacob and Lily out of their locked gazes. "Please come out, you're going to get sick! You've been in there too long!"

Lily hastily backed away from Jacob and turned her back on him. Alice, Katrina, Aiden and Hugo didn't seem to have noticed what had just happened. She heard him rustling around behind her but she did not look at him and instead hurried into the water, shivering and forcing a laugh as she dunked Louis under.

The cold of the water didn't even compare to the cold, hard feeling that had just settled itself firmly inside her chest.

**XxXxX**

It hit her like a ton of bricks that night, just how serious the situation was.

It was ten times worse than what she had imagined it to be. Worse than what she thought was just his parents were angry at him again. She wondered if his parents knew at all of just what their son was.

Was this…curse what had been bothering him all year? Was his curse what had made him so different in fifth year? That must have been when it happened - before fifth year started.

It explained just why he had been so closed off, so distant.

It explained why teachers seemed to be so delicate with him.

It explained why Professor Lamia hated him so, for there were those who still hated _them_.

It explained why Madam Edona said that Jacob visited often.

It explained where Jacob had been disappearing to those nights that she caught him.

Now that she knew, she felt stupid. It was so obvious what was wrong with him, but she had been too blind to notice. Too blind to help him. He was so clearly hurting himself, not just on that one night a month, but with the weight of the secret he was keeping.

She was such an idiot. So stupid. _It was so obvious._

Jacob was a werewolf.

**XxXxX**

**So finally, she knows...**

**Took her long enough! Most of you figured it out in the first ten chapters :P**

**Anyways, review please! **

**Even if you just want to complain about how slow Lily is sometimes :)  
**


	23. Gryffindor vs Slytherin

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the Gryffindor scarf I bought my friend for Christmas**

**So, I took a break from writing for awhile because my dad was put in the hospital, but he's stable now so I can write without worrying. I'm a little behind, but I'll catch up in no time and there will be more chapters sooner.**

**XxXxX  
**

"Good luck, Potter!"

"I'm rooting for the Gryffindors today!"

"Hope your first match goes well, Will!"

"Watch out for those Bludgers, Schell, they can be nasty!"

Lily glared at the Slytherin girl, who went unaffected by the look. She wagged her fingers back in her and Will's direction and sauntered off with her friends. For the past ten minutes, other people had been hurrying by the spot where Lily and Will hid for breakfast. It was the morning of the first Quidditch game of the year and Lily had made sure to get up extra early so she could eat breakfast and get down to the pitch in time. Will had had the same idea as her, but he was nervous, Lily could see. He had barely wanted to eat until she all but forced him, then dragged him off after in search of some place private.

It had been Will who suggested the secluded alcove on the third floor.

"I thought you said this corridor was deserted," Lily asked him.

Will shrugged. He looked more calm now, but thoroughly dishevelled. His hair was even more on end than it normally was and his breath were coming out in pants. Lily knew that she was not much better, but she was willing to sacrifice if it meant that she was distracting Will before the upcoming match.

"It was deserted until they came along," he said.

"Oh, don't get all smart with me!" Lily warned him, slapping his arm. "You know that I don't like seeing people snog, so it's even worse when it's me doing it! I _hate _public displays of affection, hate it! I get enough of it at home from Gwen and Albus. At least James and Ember know to lock themselves away in James's room so we don't have to see -"

"Alright!" Will threw his hands up in surrender. "I get it - no letting people see us."

"Good boy," Lily said teasingly. "Now let's get down to the pitch."

The Great Hall was filled when they passed by, several heads craning around to watch as they moved by. Outside, the weather was chilly and windy, the grey clouds in the sky flying by rapidly. Lily grabbed a hold of Will's arm when a sudden gust of wind hit her and almost knocked her off her feet. Down at the pitch, the stands only held a few people, most who Lily recognized as the ones that were always very early to a Quidditch match to get the good seats. It would only be a matter of minutes before everyone else began to crowd into the stands though, for the Gryffindor versus Slytherin matches were always the most intense.

It made her feel rather worried that it was Will's first match. She had to continue to remind herself that her first match had been against Slytherin as well, which included Delta, Hiro and Kaelan. Since they weren't on the team this year, Will had it easy.

Lily headed directly for her locker when she and Will entered the changing rooms. She still grinned whenever she saw the name plate on her locker reading LILY POTTER and a smaller plate under it saying CAPTAIN.

She grabbed her robes and changed in the girls showers. When she returned, she paused. Will stood in front of his locker, still only staring at the name plate on it. She could see how tense his shoulders were, and how his hands were balled into tight fists in his jean pockets. He was getting nervous again. It was weird for Lily to see Will like this, for she had often seen him as confident and competitive.

"Will?" she said softly, approaching him from behind. "You're going to be fine out there. Trust me. Once you start playing Quidditch, everything around you disappears and you can only think of the game. Especially you because you're going to have to focus on the Quaffle."

Will turned around to face her, his hand catching hers. "What if it's not like that though? I'm still going to be able to hear them booing me the entire time."

Lily sighed. "They're not going to boo you. Stop thinking like that."

"How do you know?"

"Come on!" Lily exclaimed, her patience waning. She pulled her hand out of his and crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm Lily Potter and I do not let weak people on my team. Which means you're not weak. Which means that you'll be fine!"

Will smiled weakly and reached for her again, his hands closing around her upper arms. "Do you know that you're kind of awful at giving pep talks?"

Lily grinned. "Got your mind off it though, didn't I?"

"That you did," Will said.

He began to lean in and Lily lifted herself onto her toes eagerly. But the door of the changing room flew open at that exact moment and the Eckart brothers launched themselves inside and directly between Lily and Will. Derek pumped his fists into the air while Leo grabbed Will by the shoulders and shook him.

"Slytherins are going _down_!" he exclaimed.

Lily rolled her eyes and moved away towards her locker, avoiding the stare she could feel Jacob sending her as he, Nikko and Hunter followed in behind the Eckart brothers. She was still unnerved with her recent discovery of him.

She felt as if she was crumbling away every time her eyes met his for a brief moment.

"Next time, Potter," Hunter remarked as he threw his arm around her shoulders, "make sure you're completely alone before you start snogging your boy-toy. Not everyone wants to see that. Especially with the ferocity I hear you two were going at it with during breakfast."

Lily snorted and pushed his arm off of her. "For your information, Payne, we were alone before you all barged in."

"Mutual territory, Potter. Anyone on the Gryffindor team can be in here."

"Just put your damn robes on and sit down," she ordered. She waited impatiently as her team assembled themselves on the benches in front of her, dressed in their scarlet robes and broomsticks in hand. By this point, Lily knew that captains always began to question their choices for their team, but Lily felt as if her team couldn't get any better. Despite what she thought about some members - some of who her opinions on seemed to be changing the more she thought about them - she had the most unbeatable team that Gryffindor had seen in her six years at Hogwarts.

"Alright guys," she said, "since, apparently, I'm not so great at pep talks -" She sent a sharp look at Will. "- you're not going to be getting a lot of encouraging words out of me. No half hour ego boosters or anything like that. I'd rather you not fall asleep on me."

"Thank Merlin," Hunter said to Jacob, who grinned back wryly.

"Shut up, Payne," Lily snapped. At that moment though, Alex came charging into the locker room, panting heavily, his blond hair messier than usual from the wind.

"This is _awesome_!" he exclaimed, shoving both his hands through his hair. "Everyone's already in the stands now and it's packed and so _loud_! Louder than it is at any of the meals! Is it always like this, or is it just today?"

The team all stared blankly at him as he stood in the doorway.

"Alex," Hunter said to the boy, "no offence, kid, but you're supposed to be in the stands as well. We're going to start any minute now."

Alex's eyes widened. "Oh, I know! I just had to see what was going on in here. If I'm going to be in here next year before my first match then I want to get use to the feel of it, and so far I'm loving it. It's amazing! I -"

"Alex!" Lily shouted. "You got to go."

He nodded frantically. "Yeah, yeah okay. But it's going to be great today, just watch out for the wind. I was almost knocked right over when I was trying to get here. And Will looks pretty sick, are you sure he can play? I'd say that he's going to throw up any minute now. And Jake, are you falling asleep? What's going on? Isn't the team supposed to be pumped the minutes before the match? Why isn't -"

"Go!" Lily instructed. She grabbed her broom and ushered him out of the room with it. "Anyways, so I'm only going to give you a few tips. Leo, Derek, this is the real thing now, which means that you can't keep trying to hit each other with the Bludgers. Focus on hitting Slytherins with them."

The brothers gave her salutes.

"Payne, it's really windy out there, so you really have to pay attention to where the Chasers are throwing the Quaffle and where the wind might accidentally catch it. Nikko," The boy in question looked up from where he had been staring absently at a point by Lily's elbow. "try to keep your head in the game. Will, focus on the match and nothing else."

Will nodded, but his hands were wrapped tightly around the handle of his broomstick, his knuckles almost white. Already, she could feel herself becoming annoyed with his scared act. Okay, it wasn't an act, but Lily still felt that he could have at least tried to hide it a little better. Even Alex had been able to notice it. The Slytherins would take advantage of his weakness if they found out about it.

"And Winchester," Lily began as she looked at him. Instantly, she felt her willpower to keep avoiding him start to crumble away when his blue eyes lifted to meet hers. The weight of his secret was still heavy inside her, but she didn't know what to do about it. What was worse, was how he looked right now. He looked more exhausted than she had ever seen him before, the bags under his eyes were large and dark and all his limbs hung heavily, his shoulders slumped back. Like Alex said, it looked like he was going to fall asleep any minute now.

"Jacob," she found herself saying more gently, "just be careful out there."

The atmosphere in the changing room was suddenly tense and surprised.

Lily cleared her throat. "Okay, let's go beat those Slytherins," she said quickly.

The watchers in the stands cheered when the Gryffindor team walked onto the pitch. Lily grinned and waved subtly to Rosalie and Phoenix when she saw them, jumping up and down like fools and yelling madly. The pitch was completely divided, half decked out in red and gold and the other half in green and silver. Lily noticed Delta in the first row of stands, head bent close to Kaelan's with Lyra, Hiro and Willow in the row behind them, leaning forwards and listening to Delta. None of them paid any attention to what was happening at that moment and it angered Lily. She wished that Delta and her lackeys were playing Quidditch this year, for she badly wanted to beat them when she was captain and show them who was better.

"Captains!" Mr Era called over the loud volume of the crowd. Lily moved towards him, keeping her eyes now locked on the Slytherin captain. He was a large boy with dark hair that looked as if it had been hacked at with a knife. "Potter, Crozier - shake hands," Mr Era instructed.

Lily felt as if the bones in her hand were going to break as Crozier shook her hand, his much large one encasing hers and squeezing the life out of it.

"What's with captains and trying to break each other's hands?" came the voice of the one who was announcing the match. "We can tell clearly by the look on Potter's face that Crozier is shaking her hand a little too tightly. Watch out, Crozier, her team does not look happy. Plus, I'm pretty sure Potter could kick your a-uh…butt if she wanted to."

Lily steeled her face as soon as the words hit her and yanked her hand out of Crozier's grip. Up in the announcer's podium, Professor McGonagall sat beside an extremely tall girl that Lily recognized as a Hufflepuff in her year, Evelyn Greene. It was known to many, especially boys, of how much of a feminist she was, and how crazy she was about Quidditch.

"I just have to say one thing before this match starts," Evelyn said to the crowd. "You go, Potter! Only girl on the pitch today, people! Now that's what you call sticking it to the man!"

"Miss Greene, please!" Professor McGonagall exclaimed.

Lily glanced back at her team, a grin on her face. Evelyn had been announcing Quidditch games for three years now, and she always seemed to say just the right thing to get Lily ready for a match. The boys of her team didn't seem to agree though…Well, two didn't. Will stared at the ground, breathing in and out heavily, and smiled shakily at her when he lifted his head to see her staring. Jacob on the other hand, was leaning against his broomstick, looking as if he was going to fall asleep standing up like a horse.

"Mount your brooms!" Mr Era yelled.

Lily climbed onto her broom, kicking off as soon as the whistle sounded. The wind battered her back and forth, but she forced her broom to stay steady, shifting her weight from side to side on it.

"And the Bludgers are released!" Evelyn announced. "Oh, that was close. Will Schell already almost gets unseated from his broom by that Bludger. And there's the Quaffle! In possession first is Jacob Winchester, which isn't much of a surprise. Narrowly misses colliding with Slytherin Chaser, Pedro Buckley - and passes to Schell. Oh! Schell fumbles the Quaffle! Chaser Ryerson now in possession and speeding off!"

Lily cursed. She kept her eyes away from the game though and instead watch Mr Era, who was releasing the Snitch. The Slytherin Seeker, Isaac Teller, hovered close to her.

And the Snitch was in the game.

It was gone within a second and Lily was left hovering in spot, while, above her, Teller dropped down until her was level with her. He sneered at her with a mouth of slightly yellowing teeth, but Lily only gave him a sweet smile in return.

"Good luck, Teller," she said to him, grinning when his face twisted in confusion, "you're going to need it going up against me."

She swooped away from him and began her search for the Snitch. Already she could feel her blood starting to pump faster, filling her face with colour. There was nothing else that could get her going quite like a Quidditch match could. She was excited, she was wary, she was competitive, watchful, ready. She portrayed no emotion on her face as she circled the pitch, but that didn't stop her thinking less than pleased thoughts as she listened to the commentary.

"Buckley speeds down the pitch - passes to Ryerson - wait no! He fakes to Ryerson and the Quaffle is now Amherst's. Sneak attack by Leo Eckart though, who launches a Bludger right at the Chaser - Nikko Bain takes the Quaffle from a surprised Amherst and pelts his way up the pitch - passes to Winchester - back to Bain - to Schell-"

A groan passed through the crowd.

"And Schell drops the Quaffle _again_!" Evelyn exclaimed. "Come on Schell! Show us why Potter chose you! And I don't just mean for the team!"

Lily wanted nothing more than for Evelyn to shut up at that moment. It would do nothing to help the nerves Will had, but she couldn't help but also feel that Evelyn spoke nothing but the truth. She expected a lot more of Will in this match.

"And look at that!" Evelyn called. "Winchester is actually laughing at his own teammate! Schell does not look happy. And - and Schell swipes the Quaffle from a passing Ryerson! That wipes the smirk off of Winchester's face. Winchester flies across the pitch after Schell - intercepts the pass to Bain - he scores! Gryffindor scores!"

A cheer ripped through the crowd, overpowering the sound of the Slytherins' booing.

Lily gasped as she turned at the same moment that a Bludger came pelting up the pitch and collided with Jacob's left shoulder. Angry shouts sounded from below her and Mr Era blew the whistle. The Slytherin Beater, Carson, looked pleased with himself and didn't seem to care that Mr Era was now in front of him, shouting himself hoarse. Jacob clung to his broom, hunched over, his hair whipping around his face in the wind.

"_JACOB_!" Lily screamed.

He was slowly tipping from side to side on his broom. The wind blew strongly, moving his hair away from his face and Lily could see his eyes fluttering before they slid shut and he leaned too far to the right on his broom.

With a sharp turn of her broom, she shot towards Jacob but knew that she wouldn't make it. Her heart beating madly, she cried out in relief as Nikko appeared beside Jacob and moved him steadily back onto his broom. Jacob's eyes flew open as Lily drew nearer to him and his hand shot out, wrapping around her wrist to secure himself when a strong wall of wind hit them.

"Winchester," Lily said, "are you alright?"

Jacob lifted his head and gave her a weak smirk. "Never been better, Potter."

Lily gritted her teeth. "Nikko, get him to the ground so Madam Edona can check on him and send up one of the reserve Chasers."

"Reserve?" Jacob's voice was sharp. "I'm _fine,_ Potter! There's no need for a reserve to take my place!"

"Winchester! You were just hit with a Bludger! Your shoulder could be broken!"

"It's not!"

"Potter!" Mr Era yelled. "Are we continuing this game or not?"

Lily felt heat flood her face as she looked around to see everyone on the pitch and in the stands watching her, Jacob and Nikko. She glared at Jacob, then nodded to Mr Era. Gryffindor got a penalty shot that Jacob took received ten points for.

The game began again.

"Winchester looks unaffected by that Bludger as he passes the Quaffle to Bain - to Schell - back to Winchester and - Oh no, Quaffle stolen by Ryerson. He flies up the pitch - dodges a Bludger from Derek Eckart - he shoots and - SAVED! Once again we see the spectacular skills of Hunter Payne as he saves the shot from Ryerson. Gryffindor back in possession -"

Lily continued her circling of the pitch, making sure to keep a close eye on Jacob, in case he was going to pass out again, while searching for the Snitch. It seemed that today, the Snitch was more determined not to be caught then ever. The match was filled with many more penalties and goals then ever, the score coming to two hundred and forty to two hundred and thirty for Slytherin.

It was in the same moment that a terrified scream came from the crowd that Lily saw the Snitch. She guessed the scream was for the fact that Teller was already diving after the speck of gold, and she quickly followed, panic filling her. There was no way that she was letting Slytherin beat her in her first match as captain.

It all happened in a matter of seconds.

She was fast in catching up to him, for the sheer bulk of his shoulders slowed him down, but she shot up to him, crouching low on her broom. The Snitch dropped, zooming close to the grass of the pitch. Lily and Teller followed it, Teller's shoulder ramming into Lily's ribs as they went. Lily gasped in pain but didn't slow down.

She stretched out her fingers. Teller's arm was longer than hers, but the lower she came to her broom handle, the more she passed him, inch by inch. The Snitch was a hair away from her fingers; she could feel the soft wings fluttering against her hand.

"SOMEONE SAVE HIM!"

Teller's eyes grew wide. He flipped to the right just as Lily's fingers closed around the metal of the Snitch. A heavy weight hit her, knocking her off her broom. Her back hit the pitch harshly - her hand flung out, grabbing onto the large thing that had hit her. She rolled across the grass, her breath leaving her in a _whoosh_ as something jabbed her in the chest.

She came to a stop, lying half on top of a person.

Jacob's eyes were closed, black hair plastered to his sweaty forehead and skin a pasty white. Lily gasped, rolling herself off of him to clutch onto the front of his Quidditch robes and shake him. She yelled out his name, oblivious to the silent stands around her and the shouting as Madam Edona came running onto the field. She felt Will land behind her and grab onto her arms, pulling her away. Hunter came to a running stop on the grass and stumbled to Jacob's side, helping Madam Edona sit him up as she checked him over.

"What happened?" Lily exclaimed, whipping around to stare at Will. "_What happened_?"

"Calm down, Lily!" he shouted over her. "He fell off his broom - passed out as soon as you started going after the Snitch. Leo tried to catch him, but he was almost knocked off his own broom when trying."

Madam Edona breathed out, the sound eerily loud in the quiet surroundings. "Would have broken a few bones too if you hadn't stopped him, Potter," she said, letting Hunter lie Jacob back onto the grass.

"Is he alright?" Lily asked frantically. She ignored the tense form of Will as she spun back around and gazed at Madam Edona.

Madam Edona nodded. "Passed out from exertion, I'd say. He seemed tired before, and with the combined effort of continuing to play after that hit from the Bludger, it seems that it has taken its toll. He'll be fine though."

"Are you sure that's it?"

Madam Edona lifted her eyes to Lily's. Something registered in the elderly woman's gaze and her mouth fell open in a surprised 'O'. Madam Edona was clearly able to see what Lily knew about Jacob; his secret that the matron had to know about if she treated after every full moon like Lily believed. Madam Edona snapped her mouth shut quickly again though and nodded more firmly.

"Yes, Potter, it's just exertion."

Lily bit her lip, her hand moving to cover Will's that rested on her upper arm. She felt shaken from the sudden shock of being knocked off her broom and finding out that it had been Jacob falling from his.

"And -" Evelyn's voice was shaky as she spoke, "- and I think Gryffindor wins!"

Lily held out her hand that was still wrapped around the Snitch as the stands broke out in applause and groans.

**XxXxX**

**Yay Gryffindor! Haha!**

**So, next chapter will be the confrontation between Lily and Jacob :)  
**

**Review please!  
**


	24. Hot Chocolate and Cream Puffs

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

**I am _SO _sorry that this is so late. I just took a small break with what's been happening with my family lately but everything is good now. Back to normal, which means back to my normal schedule of writing for this. I promise I'll never be so late again. I hope this chapter makes up for it!**

**Fluffyness ahead :)**

**XxXxX**

Lily tossed around in her bed. It was November twenty-second, officially a week since the November full moon - she had been watching the moon obsessively for a couple of weeks now - and almost two weeks since she had discovered Jacob's secret. She had also had another one of her dreams on the night of the full moon, worse than the others she had this whole year. She had seen nothing in her dream, but she had felt everything - and everything had felt dark and empty. Rosalie had woken her up twice that night to stop her from whimpering and crying in her sleep.

The only thought that had been in her head for the past couple of weeks had been: Jacob is a werewolf - Jacob - werewolf - full moon - Jacob is a werewolf.

Jacob had also reverted to his fifth year state. He had not spoken to Lily since that moment - other than to fight her to keep playing Quidditch during the match but that's because he was a stubborn arse - and avoided every chance to be alone with her which, normally, he would have loved to have her to himself.

She had written to Teddy and Victoire as well as her parents the day after she had found out. She had not released any details of who it was or what was wrong with the person, but they had written back quickly, Circe arriving with both of the letters at once.

_Dear Lily,_

_Teddy says that you should just tell that person to suck up whatever problem they have and tell you what__'__s wrong. He says that you should be your normal blunt, nosy self and annoy them until they break. Get all the information at once._

_Me, I say to try and be a little more gentle. Obviously this person is going through a lot and you must be careful with anything you say. Be kind and they__'__ll trust you soon enough and tell you whatever they need to. It__'__s much better than having them angry when - and if - they tell you if you try Teddy__'__s way._

_Plus, you know Teddy isn__'__t the most subtle person. You remember how he had asked me out in front of Dad, right? Not the best idea. _

_Just do as I say and everything will work out - DO NOT FOLLOW TEDDY__'__S ADVICE_

_Love, _

_Victoire_

_P.S. Dora was not pleased with your letter. She wanted more than just a hello so I think you should just write a letter to her about whatever. She misses you terribly and she also expects a present._

_Dear Lily,_

_November and you__'__re already thinking that something is up? Your mother says that you become more and more like me everyday. We always assume bad things instantly, but you know what? We tend to be right. Just ask your Aunt Hermione and Uncle Ron - they__'__ll have to tell you about all the times that my instincts were right._

_Just do what you think is right. Whether it is forcing whatever it is out of them, slowly getting the information or forgetting about it completely - I know you__'__ll make the right decision. _

_My opinion though - everything seems a whole lot better when talking about it over a hot chocolate. I know you__'__ve got the Map and the Cloak, so put them to good use and go tickle the pear - you know the one. Your mother agrees and says this once she__'__ll be okay with you sneaking out after hours. I say she can__'__t really talk, for she used to sneak out with me all the time. _

_And now she just hit me. Seems to think that I shouldn__'__t encourage bad behaviour._

_But, as you know, I was never really one to follow school rules. You__'__re a Potter, breaking rules is what we do. Your grandfather James did it, I did it and your brothers did it - I can__'__t exactly tell you not to, now can I? You__'__re the first girl to be born into the Potter line in awhile, make us Potter men proud!_

_By the way, James__'__s first Quidditch game is in January. Appleby Arrows vs. Wimbourne Wasps. He says that you__'__re allowed to bring someone to the match, as Ember and Gwen are coming along as well. _

_Keep me posted on what happens with this person!_

_With all my love,_

_Dad_

Lily rolled onto her side. The letters had been helpful, but since she had received them, she still hadn't approached Jacob. She couldn't read him as well as Rosalie or Phoenix could and she didn't know which tactic to take: her father's, Victoire's or Teddy's.

Lily hadn't even told any of the others about what she had discovered. She felt that it wasn't her secret to tell and if Jacob really wanted them to know, he would have told them already but, by the odd looks they sent him as he sulked around, they didn't know about him and his…problem.

It wasn't that she cared that he was a werewolf. No, it was anything but that. It was clear he didn't want to be a werewolf - that he hated this curse that was placed on him. As well, her father had told her about Remus Lupin and how he had been a werewolf and Lily had always loved hearing stories about Remus, Sirius and her Grandpa James. And Teddy was Remus's son and if Teddy was any proof of what Remus was like, then she had nothing but respect for the man that had suffered his entire life as a werewolf.

As well, Jacob would not hurt her, or anyone else for that matter. He had made it this far without anyone knowing about what he was, except maybe Professor Lamia, the Slytherins, Darren Clowes and Sophie. It made sense now, the way Professor Lamia and the Slytherins treated Jacob as if he was diseased and all the subtle hints they dropped, like Professor Lamia insinuating that Jacob saw a lot of Madam Edona and how Kaelan Goyle always called Jacob her guard dog and the howl he had made in Transfiguration that one day. She didn't know how Darren knew, but the way he had stood by Jacob's side defiantly that day in Transfiguration told her that he _knew_. And Sophie, most likely if Sophie knew, then Jacob's older brother Cedric knew as well.

"_If you knew, you__'__d hate me more than you already do and I wouldn__'__t be able to bear it. If I could tell you, I would - but it is not something that can easily be said. You might become afraid of me, but you__'__re not like that. You would stand tall and look down at me, think of me something wrong and disgusting.__"_

Jacob's words from the masquerade ball continued to ring in her head. When he had said them to her, she had been surprised and angry that he would think so lowly of her - that she saw anyone beneath her. And he didn't seem to know her as well as he thought he did. She didn't hate him, couldn't stand him at times (most of the time), but she didn't hate him, no matter how many times she actually told him that she did.

Lily sighed heavily and rolled onto her back. In a second she was out of bed and slipping her dressing gown over her nightdress. She quickly grabbed the Marauders Map and the Cloak out of her trunk and stashed the Cloak inside the pocket of her dressing gown. She tapped the Map with her wand and whispered, "_I solemly swear I am up to no good_."

The other girls continued to sleep and Blanca only rolled over lazily when Lily headed towards the door of the dormitory. Snores from the other girls reverberated throughout the girls stairway, and a small kitten was scratching at the door of the first year girls dorm. The common room was silent and empty, the fire burned down to only embers and ashes.

Lily climbed the boys staircase and pushed open the door of the room that held the sixth year boys. It was complete silence inside the room, as none of them seemed to snore as they slept. She peeked through the hangings of each bed, passing over Louis - Hunter - and finally reaching Jacob's bed. She quietly muttered, "_Lumos,_" with her wand inside the hangings of Jacob's bed. The tip of her wand lit up brightly, filling the closed-off bed with light that made Lily's eyes water and Jacob's clench shut tightly in his sleep.

"Wake up," she whispered, shaking Jacob's shoulder. "Oh come on, wake up you lazy prat!"

Jacob's eyes flew open, staring up at Lily in shock, tiredness and alarm as she stood over him with her wand raised and lit.

"Lily?" he asked, his voice rough with sleep. His lids fell heavily over his drowsy eyes.

"Yes, now come on," she said, slipping out from between the hangings and extinguishing her wand. "I want to talk to you."

Lily grabbed his wrist when he hesitated, pulled him out of bed and led him out of the room, the Map still in her hand. On the Map it showed that the corridors were almost clear except for Peeves, who was floating somewhere on the fourth floor, but no where near the staircase they needed to get downstairs.

The Fat Lady did not wake up as Jacob shut the portrait door gently behind them and Lily lit her wand again, holding it and the Map in one hand and pulling Jacob's wrist with her other. He did not say anything the entire way down to the kitchens but was stumbling along behind her, still half asleep.

When they reached the portrait of the bowl of fruit, Lily tickled the pear like her father had told her to. It let out high-pitched giggles before the portrait swung open. In the kitchen, house-elves scrambled over themselves to greet her and Jacob. She quickly ordered them two hot chocolates and cream puffs. She then made Jacob sit down by the fire and took the seat next to him.

"Okay…" Jacob began with a jaw cracking yawn. "What's with dragging me out of bed at two in the morning?"

"Well, you've been moping lately and I'm here to fix it because you're starting to worry people and you're affecting my Quidditch team with your mood," Lily said lightly, glancing from the fire to him.

"Moping?" Jacob asked with a tinge of annoyance now coating his voice. "Well, I'm sorry my moping is affecting the team but I think it's a problem when the captain starts to avoid one of her players."

"I haven't been avoiding you!" Lily countered. "You're avoiding me!"

"Says who?"

"Me!" Lily yelled, outraged.

This was not going as she had planned and the house-elves seemed to be taking their sweet time with their food and drinks. Lily crossed her legs tightly and stared at Jacob, who had turned his face away to stare into the flames.

"I say you're avoiding me - and I know you are. You ran when Rosalie left us alone in the common room together last week. That's what tipped me off. You should have jumped at the chance as you normally would have, but you ran." Lily could see Jacob's eyes flicker warily. "You ran just because I know you're a werewolf."

This seemed to be what Jacob was waiting for. He blew out a long breath but was saved from saying anything at the moment by the arrival of the house-elves who placed a tray of cream puffs between them as well as their mugs of hot chocolate, topped with whip cream and complete with two Pirouette cookies. Lily took her mug and scooped some of the whip cream into her mouth with the cookie. Jacob was only holding his mug, staring at the whip cream as if it would have the answer to his current problem, which was that Lily _knew_.

And Lily couldn't help but feel delighted at the fact that she did finally know.

"Did you only figure it out when you…?"

He gestured to his right shoulder and Lily understood his meaning; did she only find out when she saw his scar?

"I had suspicions before - who didn't? - but yes, it was only when I saw it."

Jacob took a slow drink of his hot chocolate, which seemed to wake him a little. "So there's probably no chance of you…you know…forgetting about it? Yeah, I didn't think so," he said when Lily shook her head sharply at him.

"Why haven't you told anyone?" Lily asked.

Jacob sent her a look that clearly asked if she was really that stupid. "This isn't something that I can just blurt out to people. I thought about telling Hunter, but he's pure-blood like me. He was raised in a pure-blood family who still have their suspicions about werewolves even though we have all those new laws your Aunt Hermione set. I didn't know who I could tell - there was no one. Teachers know, of course, they're the ones that get me out of the school in time for my transformations."

"But what about Wolfsbane Potion? It lets a werewolf keep their head during a transformation, doesn't it? Why don't you take it?"

Jacob stirred his hot chocolate. "I'm - er - allergic to aconite."

Lily paused. "A-Allergic?"

"Yes. I can touch it, smell it, use it in potions, but I can't take any potion that has aconite in it, which it's the main ingredient in Wolfsbane," he explained, still stirring his drink. "Learned it during the first full moon of fifth year. Professor Rabidus made me some but it only made my transformation worse."

Lily nodded, biting into a cream puff. "So, you're in pain for _every _full moon? Hurting yourself and that's how you get those scars? There's nothing that can be done?"

"If there was something that could be used other than Wolfsbane, then I'm sure one of the professors would have told me. So, I guess it's a no - there's nothing that can be done to help me. Every full moon for the rest of my life I'm going to be locked up alone in the Shrieking Shack, or some cellar, or set loose into the woods for the night of my transformation. At least it's only twelve a year, right?"

Jacob attempted to laugh, but it came out bitter, and he noticed as well; he quickly took a long drink and laughed again, the sound still a little forced.

"Yeah, only," Lily said softly.

Her mind was suddenly racing, though she did not show it. He was locked up _alone_ every month for an entire night. It was awful that he already had to deal with being a werewolf but going at it alone had to be unbearable. She glanced down at the Map that was in her lap. The names Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs were clear at the top of the Map, reminding Lily that there was actually something that she could do to help Jacob...if only she could get the notes...but did she really want to? Would she really risk breaking the law for _Jacob, _of all people?

Jacob turned his head to look at her. "Oh, cheer up, Lily. I've been dealing with this for over a year now - I can handle it. There's no need to worry." Jacob tapped his chin thoughtfully. "In fact, it's kind of scaring me a bit. I mean - _you _are worrying about _me_. I'm pretty sure that some people in this school would have heart attacks if they knew."

"Well, they're going to have to get use to it," Lily said casually, "because now that I know, I'm not going to leave you alone." She looked up and caught his shocked blue eyes with a smirk. "Get use to it, Winchester. I'm going to be by your side every step of the way. You won't be able to get rid of me."

Jacob grinned, his eyes bright and his face relaxed, as if everything he was worried about had been suddenly eased. "If I knew that you were going to react like this, then I would have told you much sooner. I love a little one-on-one time."

"But," she said quickly, holding up her hand. The tone of his words reminded her of something. Jacob's face wavered slightly. "I have one condition. The only way that I'll be able to stand being near you so much, is if you stop - messing - with - me!" she snapped firmly. "This is my one and only catch and it's not even a hard one. Find another girl to bug - get a girlfriend - I don't care, just do _not _ask me out. If you say the words even once, I _will _walk away from you and we will never mention this conversation again."

Lily was lying with every word she spoke. Though she did want him to stop bugging her, she would most definitely not leave him now that she knew the truth. The guilt would eat her.

Although, he did not need to know that.

Jacob pouted. "You ruin all my fun, Lily."

"Yes, I do," she agreed. "But do you agree?"

Jacob scrunched up his nose and his mouth moved to the side before he sighed mock sadly. "Alright. I agree. But if things slip out every now and then you can't blame me."

For a quarter of an hour, they drank, ate and talked lightly - mostly about their first year when they were still friends - until Lily's hand bumped against Jacob's as they both reached for a new pastry off the plate that the house-elves had brought them. She grabbed his fingers before she could stop herself and his attention turned to her. His fingers were warm from holding the mug of hot chocolate, but Lily was sure that most of the heat was just Jacob; he had always seemed so warm to Lily in her first year.

Jacob stared at Lily curiously.

"Tell me how it happened," she said, her hand tightening around his fingers as she felt him pull back just slightly.

"Lily…" He sighed. "Lily, I don't -"

"I'm not going to tell anyone, if that's what you're thinking," she said. "It's your secret to tell and I'll keep it as long as you want me to. But please? You might as well get everything out now."

Lily widened her eyes at him. She knew she was influencing him now, using her past knowledge. The look she was giving him was the same one she gave him that night in first year when he told her about his parents; the look she used on him in third year to get him to complete the potion all on his own when they had been paired together in one disastrous Potions class; the look she used on him to leave her alone in fifth year when she had been studying for her O.W.L.s. She held back the smirk that tried to creep onto her face when she felt him slouch slightly and his shoulders slump.

"It was at the very beginning of July," Jacob started hesitantly. "Had to be the third or fourth - I can't remember. Sophie was upset and had been hiding in her room all day; Mom and Dad had gone down hard on her first thing in the morning. A letter had come for her from one of her Muggle-born friends." Jacob sighed. "I told Sophie that if she wanted to receive letters from her friends, she had to tell them in her letters to send them specifically to her bedroom window, before Mom or Dad could intercept them. Sophie's never been one to have the greatest memory though. Mom almost fainted when she used the Scan Spell on the name and found out that the sender was Muggle-born. Dad hollered for an hour at Sophie, threatening to throw her from the house if they got one more letter from her Muggle-born friend. They seemed to think that dirty blood was entering their house with every letter."

"All this over a letter?" Lily asked, shocked and disgusted.

"Lily, my parents are like the ultimate pure-blood supremacists. The only reason I'm not like them is 'cause Cedric met James and Fred when he came to Hogwarts. Those two bloody well converted Cedric, who saved me and Sophie when he came home for Christmas break. Between the time since he had left and Christmas, he sent us both letters in secret - they sounded insane to us at first, the idea of getting along with Muggle-borns as if they were our equals - but when Ced was able to tell us everything at Christmas…"

"Wait," Lily interrupted, "Christmas of James's first year? Boxing Day was when James and Dad left Grimmauld Place really early. They wouldn't tell us where they were going. Did they…?"

"They came to get us with Fred," Jacob nodded. "Well, me, Sophie and Cedric left the house and went down to the nearest village to meet them. Sophie and I were hesitant at first, but when you spend the whole day walking around the Muggle village with Harry Potter, he can convince you of things."

Lily laughed. "He can do that sometimes."

"Anyways, what was I saying before? Oh, so yeah, Sophie had been hiding all day. At dinner, she didn't talk at all, but Mom and Dad were still clearly not happy. Cedric tried to get the attention off of her by talking about a pure-blood girl he had met when he had been in Diagon Alley - Alyssa Burke or something like that - but that only made things worse. My parents were so pleased that Cedric seemed to be getting to know a pure-blood girl, but they were repulsed by Sophie, saying she was just like her parents -"

"What happened to her parents?"

Jacob shrugged wearily. "Sophie's been with us since I can remember. All I know is that their names were Benjamin and Chloe. Benjamin was Dad's brother. Sophie always gets emotional when her parents are mention - understandable, considering my parents don't have hearts of gold - and Sophie ran for it. Cedric and I both chased after her, outside and into the forest, though she was able to get further ahead due to her being so small - Ced and I were crashing through everything."

He breathed out heavily, the hand that Lily didn't have clutching his pyjama pants. His eyes drifted to the fire, staring intensely into the flames.

"We never expected there to be werewolves in our back forest. But we heard Sophie scream and Cedric sent out a curse that hit something before we could see it."

Jacob shuddered slightly and Lily unconsciously moved her chair closer, her other hand joining her first to wrap around his hand more firmly. Jacob seemed restless, for his one hand kept shifting from his pant leg, to the arm of his chair, to his hair, to his mug. She had never known Jacob to be scared of anything, but the fear in his eyes was unmistakable as he only thought about what had happened to him.

"When we finally reached her, I couldn't believe it. This wolf was five times the size of a normal wolf, blond fur all over and blue eyes that were not meant to be on a real wolf. Sophie ran to Cedric and he grabbed her, sending curses at the werewolf as it started to move towards us. I snapped out of it in time to send a Reductor Curse at its paw as it took a swipe at Cedric's back when he turned to run. I almost blew off the thing's paw, but its attention was now on me and there was no one to distract it. I was cornered against a tree and - I don't remember - I can't think of…" He breathed out heavily. "I just threw every hex and curse and jinx I knew at it. I think I bloodied it up a bit, but it got to me first and - and -"

Jacob's shoulders shook as he tried to find the words. His hand in hers was squeezing too tightly, cutting off the circulation but she didn't let go. His eyes were troubled, the blues somehow looking darker.

"I probably - I wouldn't have - if Cedric hadn't -"

"You can stop," Lily said gently. "I can put the pieces together, now."

Jacob nodded, his eyes falling shut. A small tremor went down Jacob's spine as if he was cold, but his skin was still warm in her hands. However, his demeanour changed within a second. He sat up straighter, his hand finally coming to rest wrapped around his mug.

_He's putting on a brave face_, Lily thought.

Lily believed that this Jacob, the more quiet one, was worse than the Jacob she had from second to fourth year. Lily wanted - _needed_ - to do something to help this Jacob. She wanted back the Jacob Winchester of her first year; happy, healthy and her best friend.

_I know what I have to do_.

Lily leant back in her chair, letting go of Jacob's hand with one of hers to grab the new mug of hot chocolate that a house-elf offered her. The fire in front of them flickered red, orange and yellow, casting the shadows of the bustling house-elves, long and thin, on the walls. Jacob's thumb was making circles on the back of her hand, as if he was trying to calm her instead of her to him. The sensation was new but not unwelcome. It also seemed to be helping him, for his face was relaxed again as he reached for a cream puff.

Jacob was ingesting his weight in cream puffs, house-elves hurrying to refill the plate. He seemed to inhale half of them without even realizing it and Lily was satisfied when his eyes began to droop. She had been waiting for him to grow tired before they headed up to the common room. She didn't want nightmares what the memories he had just relived for her to plague his sleep. It was best to let him go to sleep relaxed.

Standing up, she waved away the house-elves and pulled Jacob to his feet. "Come on, Wolfie, let's get up to the common room."

Jacob smiled slightly, glancing down at the Marauders Map with Lily as they made their way out of the kitchens.

**XxXxX**

**Once again, sorry that this was late! But I hope you enjoyed it.**

**I like Supportive Lily much more than Bitchy Lily. And Vulnerable Jacob is cute :)**

**Review please, even just to get angry at me for the delay :P  
**


	25. Confession To Will

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, but I do own her friends and love interests, who are a serious pain to write sometimes.**

**Dear God! This chapter took me probably about three weeks to write. It did NOT like me. But it's finally over :)**

**And again I feel awful with this being such a late post. I'm almost caught up again, so updates should be every week like usual soon.  
**

**XxXxX  
**

"Merlin, Lily, sit still!"

Lily turned her head sharply to glare at Jacob.

Around them, the common room was loud and crowded, for the Hufflepuff versus Ravenclaw Quidditch match had just ended. Jacob went unaffected by Lily's look as he slipped five Galleons into Hunter's hand. The two boys had made bets over which team would win, Jacob for Ravenclaw and Hunter for Hufflepuff, and in the match, Hufflepuff had, surprisingly, crushed Ravenclaw by two hundred and ten points.

"It's hard to sit still when everyone's staring at you!" she snapped at Jacob.

And it was true. Whenever she turned her head, Lily could see her fellow Gryffindors staring at her, confusion written across their faces. She was very tempted to move out of her spot next to Jacob, but she didn't, for she knew that she would have to get use to the looks if she was going to be near him so much, like she said she was.

She caught the eyes of a group of seventh years that included Will and his friends Gavin, Sebastian and Logan. Will's friends didn't act any differently with the news that Lily was often seen around Jacob now, and instead waved to her goofily, Logan clapping Will on the back when he only continued to stare at her. Lily knew that sooner or later she would have to tell Will some sort of reason why she was suddenly with Jacob, for she had already ditched him once to go meet Jacob somewhere else.

Lily gestured to Jacob's guitar that was leaning against the couch beside them. "Play me something, please. I need some sort of distraction from all this staring."

Jacob laughed. "Poor Lily. Shouldn't you be used to stares though? This isn't the first time you've been stared at so much. People stare at you everyday."

"You flatter me, really," she said dryly. "Just play something."

Jacob laughed but complied, picking up the black guitar and placing it on his lap. As he began to play, Lily relaxed, leaning back against the couch. It seemed that his playing lately had begun to sound much better than usual, but it was also maybe because she wasn't so distracted in trying to hate him so much. She sighed and looked to the side, watching Jacob's fingers move fluidly over the strings of the guitar, knowing just which ones to pluck and strum.

"I really wish I knew how to play," Lily said absently.

Jacob looked at her, but Hunter sat down on the couch on the other side of Jacob and spoke before he could, "No, you actually don't, Potter. It looks complicated. Plus, I think you'd look a little ridiculous holding a big guitar. Face it, you're small."

Lily rolled her eyes. Jacob stopped playing and was now laughing.

"Whatever, Payne, I could so learn," Lily retorted.

Hunter pouted. "How come all of a sudden, he's Jacob but I'm still called Payne? I thought we were friends now, Potter."

"Because you still call me Potter, that's why, Payne," she told him. "Besides, who ever said that I was _your _friend?"

"Oh, harsh, Potter."

Jacob placed his guitar down again, then threw his arms over both Lily's and Hunter's shoulders. "Now, now, you two, there's no need to be like this. No arguing over little ol' me!"

At the same moment, Lily and Hunter looked at each other, then flung Jacob's arms off of them and stood up, leaving him on the couch with a mock wounded look on his face. Hunter turned and headed over to where Aiden was sitting in one of the armchairs, Roxanne on a cushion on the floor beside it, staring up at him and listening to what he was saying intently. Hunter grabbed Aiden's hand as if to greet him, then wrenched him out of the chair and sat down in it instead. Roxanne began to snap at him, but stopped when Aiden ripped a cushion out from underneath Hunter and sat down on the floor beside her. She then grinned up at Hunter, who returned her grin with a wink.

Lily watched this from where she had started to head towards the girls staircase. It seemed that Rosalie wasn't the only one that knew about Roxanne liking Aiden, but the only person who was actually doing something about it was Hunter. That brought a wave of respect for Hunter over Lily, for she was sure that Hunter had barely ever spoken to Roxanne before.

"Lily, wait," Jacob said, standing up from the couch. He grabbed his bag as he approached her and began digging around in it. When he reached her he pulled a book out of his bag and pushed it into her hands. It was about an inch thick, leather bound with gold edged pages and a gilded frame on the cover. In the center of the cover was a gold crescent moon, a small star attached to the top tip of the moon. She suddenly recognize it as the book that Jacob had quickly stuffed into his bag that day that she had used the Severing Charm to keep him behind in class so she could talk to Hunter.

"What's this for?" she asked, holding up the book.

Jacob's eyes widened and he hastily shoved the book back towards her. "Don't let anyone see it. It's a book Professor McGonagall gave me as soon as she found out…you know. It's all the research and information that's ever been gathered about…_them_. I just think that if you're going to be dealing with me – with this – then you should know what's happening."

Lily flipped through the pages of the book. "This is it? This little book is all the research they have?"

Jacob shrugged. "It's not so easy to study us you know."

She turned to the table of contents of the book.

**Part One: Origins of the Lycanthrope...5 – 11**

**Part Two: Lycanthropes Among Wizards...12 – 21**

**Part Three: Folklore of the Lycanthrope...22 – 37**

**Part Four: Infection...38 – 45**

**Part Five: Description and Common Attributes...46 – 62**

**Part Six: Monthly Transformations...63 – 80**

**Part Seven: Behaviour of the Lycanthrope...81 – 94**

"This is rubbish!" Lily said, snapping the book shut. "It's not even a hundred pages long!"

"Welcome to my world," Jacob sighed. He glanced up the girls staircase when there came the sound of snarling.

Lily followed his gaze and saw Blanca standing on the fifth step, watching Jacob intently, hissing and spitting. "Oh, hush you!" Lily told her impatiently, scooping her up into her arms, avoiding the reaching claws of the white cat. "Suck it up and deal with it!" she said, holding Blanca out towards Jacob, who looked amused that she was arguing with her cat. Blanca hissed though and squirmed until she fell from Lily's hands and flew back up the girls staircase.

"Pretty sure she just doesn't like me because of what I am," Jacob said. "Cat versus dog thing."

Lily shook her head. "Whatever, all you really need to deal with now is your little problem."

"Lily, you can't do anything about me being a –"

"Not that!" Lily interrupted. "I meant the little problem – as in your best friend Hunter. Are you ever going to tell him about what you are? I mean, he's your _best friend_, Jacob. Don't you think that counts for something? And trust me, he knows something's up and he's worried."

Both Lily and Jacob looked over to where Hunter was sprawled out in the armchair, Rosalie and Phoenix now sitting with them, Rosalie on the arm of the chair, Hunter's hand on her waist as if to steady her.

Jacob turned back to her with a frown on his face. "You know I can't do that, Lily. I explained it to you. He's a pure-blood. He wouldn't be as…_understanding_ as you are."

"Not that it isn't true," Lily said with a slight shrug that made Jacob crack a smile, "but still. He's your best friend. He'll understand. You two are so similar sometimes that it's scary – and annoying, but we'll leave out that part for now. It's irrelevant."

Jacob rubbed his forehead. "Why do you have to make me do the right thing? I hate doing the right thing. It sucks."

"Oh, trust me, I know it sucks. It'll be worth it though," she said to him.

"There's something in this for you, isn't there?"

Lily grinned. "How could you tell?"

"You're grinning like you won a Quidditch match," he pointed out.

"I just want you to do this because I'm sick of having to make up reasons to Hunter about why I'm suddenly hanging around you so much. I've already lied to Phoenix and Rosalie, and I never lie to them. Now I also have to think of something to tell my boyfriend so I don't want to have to be making excuses to your best friend as well. It's killing me!"

Jacob nodded, but slowly. "I-I'll tell him."

"When?"

Again, Jacob looked over to where Hunter was, content and relaxed in his chair. "Tonight," he said, looking back at Lily. "It's probably best if I get him when he's in a good mood. So maybe after dinner."

"Good," Lily nodded. "And while you're dealing with him, I'll be fixing my own problems."

"Which are…?"

"Will," she said, forcing herself not to turn around and look at him. He would no doubt be staring at her back with that same confused look that had been on his face a lot in the past week. Instead she focused on Jacob, whose eyes drifted over Lily's shoulder in the direction of Will. His eyes turned back to her and she could see that he was itching to say something, but refrained. He had been good since they had made the deal. He had slipped up once two days ago when he caught her and Will, then just looked like a deer caught in the headlights and hurried away.

"Right. Schell," he said, his gaze dropping to the floor. Then he sucked in a large breath and knotted his hands together behind his head. "We've got a busy night, Lily."

**XxXxX**

After dinner, Lily was able to pull Will away from his friends without too much complaint.

"Come on, Potter!" Sebastian yelled across the Great Hall as she and Will began to leave, her hand clasped inside his much larger one. The tips of his fingers were rather cold against the back of her hand, for it was rather chilly in the Great Hall, what with the beginning of December being only a day away.

"Sorry," she called back to him with a grin.

"You've been stealing our mate too much lately, little girl!"

"I'm not little!"

"You're a heck of a lot smaller than me."

"And me," Gavin and Logan added in unison.

"Oh, shut up."

Out in the Entrance Hall, Lily pulled Will off to the side, away from the view of the Great Hall. Will's stare was like he knew what she was going to say, like he knew that Lily was going to explain why she had been with Jacob so much.

"Look -" she began, but Will placed his hand gently over her mouth.

"You don't need to explain it to me if you don't want to," he said with a soft smile. "I really don't care. I mean, yeah, maybe I care a little, but that may just be because I'm a little jealous and -"

"_Jealous_? Why the heck would you be jealous?"

Will regarded her as if she was insane. "How can I not be? I've seen you and Winchester over the past six years. I remember you two in your first year. You two were…intense, to say the least. And even after your first year, you two still got on well. When you weren't fighting with him, that is. But then, even your fights were intense - like scary intense. I can't help but feel jealous that you're hanging around with Winchester again, but I can't just tell you to stop either. It would be just awful of me to deny you a friend that made your first year so….so…"

"Epic?" Lily supplied with a grin of her own. She had to admit that with Jacob - and Hunter, she guessed - her first year was an ultimate introduction to Hogwarts students and staff. Everyone had known who Lily, Jacob and Hunter were within the first week of school after they had caused the explosion in the Potions classroom, which had been a prank gone wrong. They had only meant to Charm the chairs to let off loud farting sounds whenever someone sat down in one, but it had also only been their first week of school, which meant that they had struggled with the charm and ended up blowing one of the chairs to pieces. One large piece had ricochet off the door and knocked over a cauldron full of an acid green potion, which blew up as well when the liquid inside met with a puddle of water that had been collecting in a small indent in the middle of the floor from the then leaky ceiling. When they had left the classroom after receiving a week's worth of detentions, Hunter had ripped the camera out of Lily's bag and turned to her and Jacob, snapping a picture of their first ever prank.

"Yes," Will said with a slight laugh, "let's go with epic."

Lily took hold of Will's hands. "You don't have to be jealous of Jacob, really."

"When you're calling him Jacob instead of Winchester, I think I have a little bit of a reason."

"No," she said firmly, "you don't. Believe me. We just…had sort of an agreement last week. I'm giving him a chance to be my friend again, as long as he never hits on me. He was always a good friend, but he just lost sight of that over the past years. Soon, all he'll come to see me as is a friend. I would never want him anyways. I've never wanted him."

She took a deep breath, her eyes dropping to the ground, staring at his black loafers and her Mary Jane's. "It's you I want, Will." A flush crept up her neck. She could feel the heat in her cheeks. "You've been my friend for a couple of years now, and I _really _like you. Nothing's going to change that." She lifted her eyes to his, seeing nothing but warmth in his turquoise eyes. "Nothing. And especially not me being friends with Jacob. It's only you. I know it seems a little too soon to be saying this, but I've honestly never felt this strongly for anyone before."

It was all true. She knew that she wasn't _in love_ with him yet, but everyday she was feeling more and more for Will and his warm eyes, his dark hair, his bright smiles. He wasn't someone flashy like all the other boys she had dated, but he stood out all on his own. He was handsome, but he had his flaws, like his fear of attention and his competitiveness and those were things that made her feel better about her own flaws. She didn't have to be perfect with him like she had always tried to be with old boyfriends.

"Merlin, Lily," Will breathed out, but a brilliant smile lit his face. Lily eagerly met him halfway when he began to lean down. The kiss was soft at first, slow, but it began to escalate. Lily's hands tangled themselves in his hair, his clutching her waist, pulling her closer. The voices floating out of the Great Hall sounded rather muffled in her ears, but she was able to make out the sounds of people approaching.

She pulled away from Will and began to try to fix her always messy hair. Will didn't even protest when she broke away from him, for he had learned by now how much she hated for others to see things like her snogging. Instead, a goofy grin was plastered on his face, an ecstatic look in his eyes as he looked over to the door of the Great Hall, where Sebastian, Logan and Gavin were now exiting. They all smirked knowingly when they saw Lily and Will, but said nothing as they approached.

Sebastian clapped Will on the shoulder and shook his head patronizingly. "Oh, Willie…"

"Will," Gavin greeted him, then nodded to Lily. "Girlfriend of Will."

Logan rolled his eyes. "Anyways mate, we're heading up to the library to finish the essay due for Transfiguration tomorrow. Do you want to come?"

Instantly, the look on Will's face disappeared to be replaced by horror. "The essay is due _tomorrow_? You're just pulling my leg, right? Please tell me that you are!"

"Afraid not, mate," Gavin said.

Will turned to Lily. "I have to go, is that okay?"

Lily laughed. "I'm a big girl, Will, I can make my own way up to the common room. Go. I don't want to hear tomorrow that Professor Lamia murdered you in class over a stupid essay."

"Thanks, love," he said quickly, pecking her on the cheek, then heading up the staircase with the other three. Just before they disappeared up the stairs, Sebastian turned around and gave her two thumbs-up.

Lily grinned. Love. She liked the sound of that. None of her boyfriends had ever made it to the stage to be able to call her love without her feeling awkward, but it sounded smooth and lovely coming from Will's mouth. With a slight laugh to herself, Lily turned towards the Great Hall, intending to find Rosalie and Phoenix, but found her path blocked by Elodie Sinclair.

Lily groaned. Elodie stood in front of her, attempting to look intimidating with her hands on her hips, but her bright yellow headband just made her seem a bit ridiculous. Especially today's headband, for it had a large yellow bow on it.

"What, Elodie?" Lily asked impatiently.

"You think you're so perfect, don't you, Potter?" Elodie snapped, her pale face turning red.

"What are you talking about?"

Elodie scoffed. "Don't act stupid, Potter, it's not attractive. You're leading them on. Both of them. Will and Jacob. You're toying with both of them, letting Will think that you really like him and dangling yourself in front of poor Jacob, knowing he can't refuse you."

"As always, Elodie," Lily said slowly, as if talking to a toddler, "you have no idea what you're talking about. Mind your own business."

"I will, don't you worry," she said with a triumphant grin. "But sooner or later, those boys will come to their senses and realize that you're nothing like what they always saw you as."

Lily nodded, her lips pursed. "Of course, Elodie, you're right, as usual."

"Don't you - Oh! Hi Jake!"

Lily turned. Jacob was descending the stairs, his eyes jumping from Lily to Elodie and back again.

"Did you tell him?" Lily asked immediately, ignoring Elodie completely.

Jacob's eyes rested on Lily. The light of the torches in the Entrance Hall reflected in the dark blue of his eyes. He shook his head once, his hands delving into the pockets of his pants.

"Jacob, you said you would!" Lily complained.

"I tried," he said. "We were up in our dorm, just hanging out after we had eaten, and I was about to tell him, but I couldn't. I'm just not ready to yet."

Lily sighed but nodded. "I won't push you. This is a big thing. But you do know that you'll have to tell him sooner or later. He feels left out, and you know how much he hates being left out of things."

Jacob agreed reluctantly. He moved towards Lily and she put her hand on his shoulder, turning to head back into the Great Hall with him. Elodie said Jacob's name a few times from behind them, but Jacob paid her no mind. He looked at Lily and asked, "Did you say anything to Schell?"

"Didn't need to," she told him. "He understands that he doesn't need to know everything."

"Schell is just _so _perfect," Jacob muttered to himself, but Lily heard.

"Jacob, don't, please."

"Sorry. Old habits die hard, I guess," he said, though it didn't sound sincere.

They headed through the doors of the Great Hall, spotting Rosalie's bright, white blonde head. They left Elodie behind them, dropping her waving hand slowly, a devastated look on her face. They didn't see though, and didn't care either.

It was only _Elodie_, after all.

**XxXxX**

**Damn you, Jacob. Suck it up and tell him. He's so complicated at times :(**

**So, I'm thinking of writing a chapter in Phoenix's point of view, because I want to focus on my other characters as well. Would you like that? Or should I just stick to Lily?**

**Anyways, review and tell me what you think! PLEASE!  
**


	26. Pushing Boundries

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, but I do own my unstable OCs.**

**So, this chapter is in Phoenix's point of view, and it's kind of short but it's because I wasn't actually going to do one, but Lily's been giving me trouble lately so I thought Phoenix would fill in for her while I try to get Lily under control.**

**And thank you all for the reviews, they are amazing and a literally squeal happily when I see that I have one. Enjoy!**

**XxXxX  
**

Phoenix dragged Rosalie along behind her, through several inches of snow that had been falling nonstop over the past four days. Rosalie had wanted to stay up in the castle for the spare period that they had that morning, but Phoenix had known exactly who had which class at the same time. Darren had Care of Magical Creatures down at Hagrid's hut, where Professor Scarta was always known to teach. Phoenix could already see the small class of sixth years from where she and Rosalie were now standing behind the greenhouses. Lily's flaming red hair stood out amongst the snowy grounds, standing between the tall forms of Hunter and Jacob, who made her seem twice as small.

Professor Scarta stood in front of the class, a thick leather glove extending all the way up past his elbow and a bright, beautiful bird on his forearm. Phoenix was easily able to recognize it as her namesake with its bright red and gold plumage and large body. Phoenix never understood why her parents named her after a bird, of all things.

"Come on, Feens," Rosalie sighed. "Why the hell are we here? How is this going to help you at all?"

Phoenix looked over her shoulder at Rosalie, with her long blonde hair tied back from her face and her silver eyes surrounded in dark liner, and made a shushing noise. "Be quiet! I'm collecting information. You want me to win this bet, don't you?"

"Obviously," Rosalie said. "Which you only have a little over a month left to accomplish. If you fail me, I will take you off my list of friends. Louis as well. If I win though, Louis and you are going to be at the very top."

"Why will Louis be?"

"Because there are just some things that you can't go through without calling someone one of your best friends. Like running naked through a school with pink hair, for example."

"Yeah, okay," Phoenix said, trying to keep herself from snorting as she looked back at the class by Hagrid's. Darren was standing beside Jacob, the back of him unmistakable because of his head of extremely curly black hair. Phoenix didn't know what it was about his hair, for his curls were tight and unruly, but she loved how it looked. His hair was unique but also completely adorable.

Phoenix blinked quickly. Since when did she think of someone as adorable? Yes, she'd call her friends it affectionately, or call a piece of clothing it, but when it came to her conquests they always had a classification. There were the ones that were under the _Bloody Gorgeous _category, then there were the _Sexy _and the _Maybe Longer Than Two Weeks _ones, but they were extremely rare. Never had she ever classified anyone under the _Adorable _category. She didn't even know that she had an _Adorable _category. She didn't even know how high on the rating the _Adorables_ were. She had a feeling that they outranked all the other ones, and that worried her.

"So, what's your plan of attack?" Rosalie suddenly asked.

Phoenix scrunched up her nose, an annoying habit that she had since she was little and couldn't stop doing, no matter what. Her mother called it her thinking face.

"Well, I'm basically considered his friend," Phoenix explained. "Maybe if I abstain – Merlin help me – from any relationships, then that will convince him that I've changed and he'll give me a shot. I mean, he has to know by now that I like him, right? I've made it pretty obvious. I just have to have…" Phoenix cringed. "I just have to have some _patience_."

The sigh that Rosalie let out sounded both annoyed and defeated.

"Rosie?" Phoenix asked, turning to look at her friend.

Rosalie was now leaning against the greenhouse, her hand rubbing her forehead. Her eyes were scrunched shut, her mouth parted a little, foggy breath escaping.

"You're his friend?" Rosalie asked.

Phoenix nodded. "Why? What's wrong with being his friend?"

Rosalie shook her head, her hand dropping from her forehead to twist the fringes of her Gryffindor scarf around her fingers. "Being a guy's friend isn't always the greatest thing if you're hoping that he might date you later on. Believe me. Boys can be so blind sometimes, especially when they consider a girl to be their friend. Normally, that's how they stay – just their friend. It's frustrating. It's so annoying because no matter what you do, they still don't see it." Rosalie groaned loudly. "Even when I turn my Veela powers on full blast, he still just sees me as Rosalie! No, all I'll ever be to him is the only girl who _ever_ takes on his challenges, but he doesn't realize that I just do that so he'll notice me!"

Phoenix felt her eyes grow wide. When Rosalie looked up at Phoenix and caught her eyes, her cheeks turned bright red. If Rosalie's rant hadn't hinted to Phoenix that something was wrong, then the blush definitely would have.

"Rosie? What's going on, Rosie? Who are you talking about?"

Rosalie shook her head again. "I'm being silly," she said quickly. "I'm just worried about you. Darren doesn't seem like he's going to agree to go out with you anytime soon."

Phoenix moved towards Rosalie, glancing over her shoulder to see that the Care of Magical Creatures class was now ending, all the students heading towards the school. She looked back at Rosalie, knowing that she could get information on Darren anytime, but Rosalie was sure to pretend like this never happened later on. She placed her hands on Rosalie's cheeks, making the blonde look at her.

"Don't try to pass this off," Phoenix said gently. "Now tell me, who is this about?"

Rosalie's silver eyes shifted everywhere. Up and down, from side to side, until they finally came to rest of Phoenix's and she reluctantly admitted, "Hunter…"

Phoenix tried to hide her shock, but she knew some of it managed to show, for Rosalie frowned. "Hunter," Phoenix breathed out, as if the name was suddenly foreign to her, a new taste in her mouth. "Blimey Rosie. How long has this been going on for?"

Rosalie's hands lifted and pulled Phoenix's hands away from her face. She held Phoenix's wrists lightly, as if worried that she might break her. "Since fourth year," she admitted.

"Fourth year was when you dated Jacob…" Phoenix's sentence trailed off, but Rosalie nodded, confirming what Phoenix hadn't been able to say. Fourth year was when she had dated Jacob, but yet she had liked Hunter then too. Phoenix was easily able to piece everything together. Rosalie had dated Jacob to see if she could make Hunter jealous, but after three weeks of nothing…Phoenix had always wondered why Rosalie and Jacob had seemed so friendly just an hour after their breakup. Did Jacob know that Rosalie liked Hunter?

Rosalie flung herself at Phoenix and buried her head against her shoulder. Phoenix numbly held Rosalie, feeling her hot tears hitting her neck. She was surprised – shocked really – that Rosalie had hidden this for so long, from any of them. Then she wondered if Lily knew. But no, seeing the way that Rosalie was acting now, Phoenix could tell that no one had known about Rosalie's secret.

**XxXxX**

Phoenix leaned against the back of the greenhouse long after Rosalie had returned to the school. The snow had begun to seep through her shoes, soaking her toes with cold water until they were numb. Phoenix only sighed and dropped her head back against the greenhouse.

She couldn't believe that she had been blind to see how much Rosalie was hurting. She obviously really liked Hunter, which was probably the only reason that they had ever done that stupid thing in November when they had gone into the freezing cold lake. She couldn't help but think about all the crazy things Rosalie had done over the past two years, analyze them and notice how each thing had included Hunter in some way, whether he was giving her the challenge or participating in a challenge himself from another person, and Rosalie eagerly volunteering to go with him.

How could she and Lily both have possibly missed it?

"Uhhh…what are you doing?"

Phoenix jumped and let out a surprised shriek.

Darren stared at her from around the side of the greenhouse, now an amused look plastered on his face. He came around and leaned against the greenhouse beside her, looking around as if it was a new surrounding.

"Why are you just standing here alone?" he asked.

Phoenix kicked some snow off of her shoe. "I'm just…thinking, really."

"You had a really concentrated look on your face before I scared you," he said with a smile. "Your nose was wrinkled and everything. Whatever you were thinking about must have been seriously important if you just tuned out the rest of the world."

"Do you think I'm selfish?" she asked him.

Darren's mouth opened, then closed again. Finally, he said, "To be honest, I haven't really known you long enough to determine if you are or not. From what I've seen though, you don't seem selfish."

"Then how do I not notice that one of my best friends is in love with my other friend?"

Darren's face registered shock.

_Welcome to my world_, she thought dryly.

"Jacob and Lily?" he asked, his voice low.

She started. "What? No!" Then she found herself laughing. Darren had somehow, with those three words had made her feel so much better, for if Phoenix had noticed anything over the past few years, it was Lily and Jacob. Darren watched her silently, his arms crossed over his chest. But Phoenix was relieved. She had at least been able to notice what had been going on with one of her best friends, but Rosalie had always been better at hiding things then Lily had been. And Lily had never noticed that Rosalie liked Hunter either, which didn't make Phoenix such an awful witch after all. but then again, Lily never noticed a lot of things. Obliviousness had to run in the Weasley/Potter genes.

Darren uncrossed his arms and moved to stand in front of Phoenix. "I've think you might have caught hypothermia or something because you've lost it." He extended his hand to her. "Come on, let's get you inside."

Phoenix stared at his hand, biting her lip. She slowly took his hand, expecting him to pull it away before she got a grip, but he only smiled and began to lead her up towards the school. The smile made her purse her lips. So that was the reason why she called him adorable. That smile of his, the upturn of one corner of his mouth that displayed only his upper teeth which made him look half sheepish and half amused.

"If not Lily and Jacob," Darren began as they continued up to the school, "then who? Hugo and Katrina? That's not really a surprise though, considering they told us they were dating a few weeks ago."

Phoenix shook her head. "No." She hesitated for a moment before she told him, "It's Rosalie and Hunter. Rosie's liked Hunter since our fourth year and I just found out now, which made me feel like a horrible friend because it took me two years."

Darren looked at her and cocked his head. Another adorable look.

"Now that I think about it, I guess I could see the two of them," he said. His hand squeezed hers slightly. "But if you didn't know about it beforehand, then it would be hard to pick up on. Like us right now. People would get the wrong impression with this –" He held up their linked hands "- when we know that it's only friendly. It would be the exact opposite with them. People see them as just being friendly with the way they act, but only they – or just Rosalie, I guess – would know any differently."

Right then, Phoenix wanted to yell out to him that it wasn't just friendly for her, but like she had told Rosalie earlier, she needed to have patience. She was making a lot of headway if he was willingly holding her hand.

Instead, Phoenix nodded and smiled. "You're right. Thanks, Darren. You really made me feel a lot better."

They stopped just inside the Entrance Hall, Phoenix reluctantly dropping his hand.

"You can always talk to me, Phoenix." He smiled again. "I hear I'm a good listener."

She laughed. "I'll see you at dinner. I need to go up to change into some dryer clothes." Just as she was about to turn, a strong sense of Gryffindor bravery came over her and she looked at him again. They were already pushing boundaries today with him holding her hand, so she leant forwards and kissed his cheek quickly. When she pulled back, she tried to find something – some sort of hint or clue as to what he felt about her kiss but there was nothing.

Phoenix turned away again, heading towards the staircase, defeated.

Did she push things too far?

She was surprised for the thousandth time that hour by Darren's hand catching her wrist and turning her back to him. She was hoping for some big declaration of love like she had seen in the movies she watched with Lily and Rosalie on the nights they gathered together in the summer at Lily's house (the only one of their houses with a Muggle television), but Darren only nodded towards the staircase.

"We have about three hours until dinner," he said. "I'm craving some hot chocolate, so how about you go change and I'll meet you down in the kitchens?"

"You know how to get to the kitchen?"

He nodded. "The guys took me last week. But how about it? Do you want to join me?"

Phoenix felt a full blown smile light her face. "Yeah, yes! I'll be back down in a few minutes."

"Hurry then," Darren said, then turned away and began descending the nearest set of stairs that Phoenix knew led down to the Hufflepuff common room and the kitchens.

Phoenix turned towards the staircase again, giddier than before. Maybe she hadn't pushed things too far with that kiss. However, just as she put her foot on the first stair, she saw a head of black hair out of the corner of her eye. Thinking it was Darren coming back, she turned and looked, but the hair was straight and not curly. The same set of ochre eyes stared at her from the dungeons staircase.

Willow Clowes smiled shyly at Phoenix. She glanced around her, saw that they were alone in the Entrance Hall, then gave Phoenix a larger smile, the same one that Darren had given her.

In the next second, Willow disappeared down the staircase, presumably back to the Slytherin common room with her friends.

Phoenix couldn't help but laugh.

_I think I just got Willow Clowes's approval_, she thought.

**XxXxX**

Heading up into the sixth year girls dorm, Phoenix knew that there was a stupid, pathetic, dorky smile on her face. She had received enough looks in the common room to tell that she wasn't the only person who noticed her smile. But she couldn't get rid of it. Phoenix Blair did not go all giddy over a love interest. Never. Yet, she really wanted to gather Lily, Rosalie, Alice and Katrina in their dorm, move all their blankets and pillows on the ground, surround themselves with enough junk food to make a fat man jealous and rant for hours about how_ adorable _Darren was with his curly hair and his ochre eyes and his sweet personality.

And then Phoenix wanted to hit herself. Really badly. _She did not act like this!_

In the dorm, Rosalie was lying on her back on her bad, blonde hair dangling over the end. Phoenix paused when she saw that her Veela friend was flipping through Lily's photo album_. _She didn't even realize that Lily had brought the book this year.

"Rosalie?" Phoenix asked, moving into the room and sitting down on the bed beside Rosalie. Rosalie turned her head and grinned at Phoenix. The grin made Phoenix feel slightly unsettled. "Rosalie, about earlier..."

"Look how little we all are," Rosalie said absently, turning onto her side to show Phoenix the picture she was pointing to. It was one of the five girls all crowded together on one bed in the exact same dorm they were in now, dressed in pajamas decorated with animals and their hair all in ponytails, pigtails or braids. Phoenix could tell that they were all in second year.

Phoenix knew that Rosalie was trying to avoid talking about what happened earlier, for the Veela was not one to show weakness and hated it when she did. Phoenix decided to humour her friend. "Except you," she said, pointing to the white-blonde head in the moving photo. "You've always been tall and leggy."

"Veela traits," Rosalie shrugged. Rolling onto her stomach, she flipped to near the end of the album, where there were still a few empty pages. Reaching over the end of her bed and into her open trunk, Rosalie drew out the small clutch that Phoenix recognized to be the one she had during the masquerade. "Hey, you need to see these pictures I found," she said, flicking open the clutch. She held them face down against her chest so Phoenix couldn't see the photos. "I was honestly shocked. I didn't even remember taking them either."

Phoenix rolled her eyes. "Show me the pictures, Rosie, and then we need to talk about this problem you have."

"I don't have a problem," Rosalie said casually, "but anyways, shut up and look. But _don't tell anyone_!"

As soon as Rosalie laid down the pictures in front of Phoenix, every thought was pushed out of her mind; the revelation of Rosalie liking Hunter, Darren inviting Phoenix down to the kitchens for hot chocolate, Willow grinning at her and the fact that Blanca was rubbing insistently against her leg, mewling loudly for attention.

"Holy mother of Merlin," Phoenix breathed out, picking up one of the picture.

Rosalie grinned maniacally. "I know!"

The photos were clearly from the night of the masquerade, for Phoenix remembered that red dress of Lily's and the fiery curls that took her an hour to do. The thing that made Phoenix breathless in shock was that it was a photo of _Lily_ and _Jacob_ sitting together on a bench under a tree - a very romantic setting, Phoenix noted - and attached at the lips in what looked to be a very heated snog. Placing down the photo she held, she looked through the other ones. But they were all the same, except for one where Lily was clutching almost desperately onto the lapels of Jacob's jacket, her head turned to the side and Jacob's face against her neck. Phoenix couldn't even describe the look on Lily's face. It was like she was in pain, but pleasurable pain - if that was even possible.

"How -"

Rosalie shrugged again. "I must have taken them when I was drunk or something because I _really _don't remember ever seeing _this_." She gestured wildly at the pictures.

"Has Lily seen them?"

"No, I tried to tell her about them," Rosalie explained, "the day that we went into the lake - like a week after the ball, but we were interrupted. I haven't tried again since because...well, you've seen her lately. Plus, she and Jacob are _finally _making up! Becoming friends again. I don't want to show her these pictures and end up ruining that. I just needed to show someone."

Phoenix bit her lip. "We should really show Lily these."

"No, Feens," Rosalie said firmly. "Just forget about these, okay. I just needed to tell someone."

"Fine," Phoenix huffed. "But if we're not going to tell Lily about those, then we need to figure out what we're going to do with your problem."

"I don't have a problem!" Rosalie snapped, losing patience.

Phoenix didn't flinch. Rosalie's anger had never scared Phoenix before, despite how everyone else reacted when Rosalie got pissed. They always seemed to think that she would go all Veela on their asses and start throwing fireballs from her hands.

"Rosalie -"

"Go away, Phoenix!" Rosalie commanded angrily. She looked away from Phoenix and slammed shut the photo album, throwing it onto Lily's bed and snatching up the incriminating pictures of Lily. "I don't need your help, or your pity, or anything else you have to offer! I can deal with this myself. I have been for years now!"

Phoenix knew that there was no way to get through to Rosalie once she had lost her head. Instead of arguing with her further, Phoenix threw her hands up in exasperation and stalked over to her trunk. In silence, she changed into a dry pair of clothes and left the room. She wasn't going to bother calming Rosalie down. She just needed time alone, like always when she was angry.

And Anyways, Phoenix had an _adorable_ boy waiting for her down in the kitchens.

**XxXxX**

**Ta da! There you have it - the inner workings of Phoenix Blair's mind.**

**Anyways, review please!  
**


	27. Slytherin Behaviour

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

**Sooooo...yeah, late again. I know and I feel bad. Just one thing after another though and this time - exams. Ew. That's all I have to say and that's my only excuse. Ew.**

**XxXxX  
**

There was a fresh coating of snow on the stands of the pitch the afternoon the Gryffindor Quidditch team had practice. Lily seated herself on the topmost bench, playbook in hand, dressed in her Quidditch robes and a heavy jacket. She had used a Vanishing charm a moment ago on the place she sat now, removing all the snow so she had a dry seat. Watching the boys on her team race around on their brooms, Lily jotted down a few notes in her playbook.

She was surprised with how well the team had been improving lately. She thought that it maybe had something to do with Jacob at least trying to disguise his complete disgust for Will and Lily's relationship, making the entire team connect better, instead of having a huge rift between Lily, Will and Jacob.

She had to admit that the past few weeks hanging out in the common room with all of her friends and cousins, not having to glare at Jacob, were some of the best she had. They'd gather in front of the fire, Lily seated, rather awkwardly sometimes, between Jacob and Will or, if she was lucky, Will and anyone but Jacob. Will's friends joined them and they'd even manage sometimes to sneak Darren into the common room. It was odd seeing Phoenix and him sitting so close together, sometimes even holding hands, but Lily forced herself not to ask about it. Phoenix would tell her if anything important happened. She was instead always preoccupied with trying not to roll her eyes at Rosalie, who was constantly touching her shining hair when Gavin was close by and sending him subtle winks that made him turn red and grin.

Currently, in the air, Hunter had seated himself in one of the Goal posts, dangling his legs with his broomstick in hand, while the Eckart brothers hit a Bludger back and forth between each other, and Will, Jacob and Nikko were taking turns passing the Quaffle to Alex, who was catching every shot. If he continued to get better, Lily wasn't going to hesitate to put him on the team next year, for Will wouldn't be there. Alex cheered when he fumbled with a catch but still managed to trap the Quaffle in his arms. Lily smiled. Alex was so small, but so outgoing and upbeat. She had been keeping an eye on him since the attack at Hogsmeade, but he had recovered from it faster than she had expected.

But that also could have been for the fact that for the first week or so afterwards, at least one of the guys had walked with him to each class. Lily had never been able to miss the amazed, awed looks on Alex's fellow first years when they saw Alex approaching with one of the sixth years at his side. Alex had to be the most popular first year, especially when the story of the attack had gotten out and they had learned that he managed to sneak out of the school and stand a fight with older, more experienced Slytherins. Even some of the older years had looked at him with respect.

Lily jumped when Katrina suddenly appeared, cleared snow away from the spot beside Lily and dropped down next to her, cheeks flushed from the cold and glasses perched on her nose. She smoothed a gloved hand over her straight brown hair, making it stick out from the static. There was a look in Katrina's blue eyes that made Lily close her playbook and set it aside.

"You alright, Kat?" she asked.

"No, I'm not," Katrina said immediately, arms crossed over her chest. "Oh! Why did I even come all the way out here? I could have waited for you to come inside or told one of the others. Whatever." She turned to Lily. "I just caught Delta Savage and Lyra Malfoy trying to lure Elodie Sinclair into an empty classroom. Elodie was in tears -"

"It's really not hard to make Elodie cry, Kat," Lily explained, wincing when Alex threw the Quaffle and Nikko missed catching it with his hands, instead using his face to catch it. "All you need to do is insult Jacob or say he's shagging some girl in a broom closet and Elodie will burst into tears."

"Lily," Katrina sighed impatiently, "I _know _you have a problem with Elodie -"

"I don't have a problem with her. She's just annoying."

"Lily!"

"Okay, okay, fine. Keep going."

"The fact is that it was _Delta _and _Lyra _trying to get her into the classroom. They were _comforting _her, and even when Elodie told me after that it had been Professor Lamia that made her cry in the first place."

Lily's fingers brushed over the textured cover of her playbook. "That is a little odd, considering the two of them like Lamia," she said slowly, moving her eyes from Katrina, down to her boot clad feet. "And why would they be trying to comfort _Elodie_? I mean, it's -"

"Lily," Katrina said more harshly. "Enough with this 'It's just Elodie' stuff."

"I'm not trying to be mean or anything, Kat," Lily explained. "It's just weird because the only times I've ever seen Delta or any of those Slytherin girls talk to Elodie is when they mocked her for liking Jacob. Something really just doesn't add up there, and I really don't like it."

Katrina regarded Lily seriously, suddenly looking doubtful. "What are you thinking?"

"Nothing," Lily assured her. "It's just…I know that the Slytherins are up to something. They've been acting strangely, what with Delta and them quitting the Quidditch team, then how they attacked Alex, and now this? I'm sure Delta and Lyra have never comforted anyone before, not even each other. So why are they all of a sudden so interested in Elodie?"

Katrina said nothing. Her gaze drifted up towards the boys, watching them fly around. Alex took the Quaffle from Jacob and launched it at Hunter, who was still sitting inside the Goal post. The ball collided with his stomach and knocked him out of the post. He flung himself onto his broom quickly and levelled himself out, glaring when the rest of the team began laughing.

Katrina sighed, making Lily look away from the team and over to her again.

"Just don't get too involved in this, Lily," Katrina advised her. "The Slytherins - they're dangerous and I'm worried about what they can do. They know things that even I don't know, and it's nothing good."

"Seriously, Kat, you don't need to worry about me."

"Yes, I do," she said firmly. "You don't realize it, but you go running into things head on. You don't care about what happens until _after_ and one of these days it's going to be something terrible."

"I can take care of myself," Lily told her. She didn't see why Katrina was so insistent about warning her about these things. She knew not to test the Slytherins, not to press their limits. She wasn't stupid.

"I _know_ you can," Katrina snapped impatiently. "But _they _can too. They know how to hide things, how to make sure no one finds out about things they have done. You think you can handle them, Lily, but you can't. They're Slytherins - they're cunning. You're a Gryffindor, meaning you're brave and you'll stand up to the Slytherins, and they _know this_. It's why Gryffindors and Slytherins don't get along well. They like to mess with us. They push us and we push back. There's no reasoning, like even if we know a fight is stupid and pointless - it just happens to see how far you can go without killing the other person."

Lily bit her lip.

Thinking about what Katrina was saying, she could see that the other girl was right. She never thought about things when she was against Delta or Kaelan - she just wanted to get them back for starting a fight, or calling her or her friends a name, or anything. But another thing about Gryffindors were that they could be incredibly headstrong. Lily didn't want to admit to Katrina that she was right, for she felt that if the Slytherins didn't start the fights, then Gryffindors would never have to finish them.

**XxXxX**

Lily entered the Great Hall with the rest of the team, Alex and Katrina after practice to find the Heads of Houses circling around the tables, writing names down on the parchments of paper they held. By the looks of it, barely any of the students were having their names written down and the teachers were getting agitated.

The team dispersed when they reached the Gryffindor table. Will kissed Lily's cheek and walked over to where his friends were while Lily, Katrina, Jacob and Hunter dropped down into the seats across from the others. Alex was intercepted by Professor Rosewood as he began to hurry towards the other first years. She said something to him but he only shook his head and ran around her.

"What's this about?" Lily asked, nodding her head at Professor Rosewood.

Hugo swallowed the large chunk of chicken he was chewing. "The professors are collecting names of the people staying at the school over the Christmas break. I'm pretty sure that so far only about five have signed up."

"Who?" Jacob asked as he begun filling up his plate, smacking away Hunter's hand when they both reached for the large roast in the center of the table.

"The Slytherins," Aiden said darkly, staring over Lily's shoulder, "and Elodie Sinclair."

By the look on his face, Lily could tell that Katrina must have told him about the Slytherins and Elodie before she told Lily. She wasn't the only one who was suspicious then about what the Slytherins were up to, for they had to be planning something if they were all of a sudden willing to be around Elodie Sinclair, who just so happened to be in love with one of the people they hated most.

"Fantastic," Jacob remarked bitterly.

Lily glanced at him, then saw that down the table, Sophie Winchester nodded slowly when Professor Rosewood stopped by her and her friends. Her friends all frowned but did nothing until Professor Rosewood continued on her way, then they all reached towards her, speaking quickly, and Sophie smiled sadly.

Lily sighed when she realized what Sophie nodding to Professor Rosewood meant.

"You're not going home this Christmas?" Lily asked Jacob.

Jacob looked up at the same moment as the others all turned to him.

Hunter was the only one that smiled. "No worries, Potter. I'm coming back to school the day after Christmas, so our dear Jacob won't be alone for the whole Christmas break."

"And at least you'll have Sophie with you," Aiden said. "What about Cedric though?"

"Ced's not going home either," Jacob explained. He looked at Lily with a slight grin. "I'm pretty sure that your parents invited him to spend Christmas with your family."

Lily's eyebrows rose. "Really? I never heard of it. Well, if you want, I can try and -"

"Don't," Jacob said before she could finish. "Don't try to get me invited to your Christmas. I'm glad I'm not going home, I really am. Just me and Sophie here will be good, it'll be _fun _for once. And I'll try not to murder any Slytherins while everyone's gone," he added when Alice looked worried.

They all laughed. Rosalie reached across the table and touched Jacob's arm. "I can come back as soon as I can as well. Mum's got a new boyfriend and he's not on my list of top ten."

"Well great then!" Hunter exclaimed, and his hands wrapped around Jacob's arm, trapping Rosalie's hand between his and Jacob's arm. "It'll be the four of us. I can already imagine the snowball wars we're going to have."

"Snowball fights, Hunter," Katrina told him.

"No, no, Katy," Hunter said to her patronizingly. "Snowball wars. No fights I have are simply called fights - no, they're wars, battles, _crusades_."

Lily found herself grinning. She always loved Christmas with her entire family - it was one of her favourite times of the year - but suddenly, what Rosalie, Hunter and Jacob were planning sounded like it was going to be fun, something that she really wanted to be a part of...at least, that's what she would say when it was actually that she couldn't ignore the feeling that she didn't want to leave Jacob alone without her. She was worrying about him enough lately, what with the next full moon just a day away.

"To hell with it," she said, placing her one hand over Hunter's. "I'm joining you. The day after Christmas, I'll be here. You have to get me a wicked awesome present though."

Jacob's smile grew and he and Hunter laughed together. "Alright!" Hunter exclaimed. "This is shaping up to be the most ultimate snowball war ever! Whoever I'm against is going _down_!"

"Watch it, Payne," Lily hissed jokingly, "I've inherited the Potter war skills."

"Have you now?" Hunter challenged. "How about we see how good your war skills are now with a game of Wizards Chess?"

Lily hesitated and the smirk on Hunter's face widened. Though she said she had inherited the Potter war skills, which were pretty kick ass from what she heard in all her History of Magic classes, she had also inherited her father's Wizards Chess skills, which were not so kick ass compared to her Uncle Ron's.

"I'll play you," Rosalie said quickly. "And I'll run you into the ground."

Hunter laughed loudly. "Alright, Valentine, let's see how well you do. And remember, your Veela skills can't help you here."

"They don't help me with anything, Payne."

Lily didn't miss the subtle hint of annoyance in her voice when she spoke of her Veela traits. And it wasn't like the usual annoyance at them for having people panting after her, but it instead sounded like her Veela traits had disappointed her. She also saw that she wasn't the only one who heard it. Phoenix sat beside Rosalie, frowning.

"They seemed to be helping you with Gavin earlier," Hunter said with a wicked smirk.

"Shut up," Rosalie said, deadpanned.

When all the others stood up to follow Rosalie and Hunter upstairs for what seemed to be an epic game of Wizards Chess, Phoenix caught Lily's wrist and kept her at the table. The others all left the Great Hall, not even glancing back once to see if everyone was following. When they were gone, Lily turned to Phoenix curiously.

"Feens?" she asked.

Phoenix bit her lip, then said softly, "Have you noticed anything…weird going on with Rosalie lately? Or, I guess, over the past two years?"

Lily shook her head. "The only weird thing I've noticed is you and Darren. Why? What's wrong with Rosie?" she asked, praying that it was nothing serious. Lily knew it was selfish, but she really didn't want to be keeping another dark secret hidden from her friends. Jacob's secret was enough, and it was so big that it took up her deep, dark secret quota.

Phoenix waved her hand, brushing off Lily's comment. "That's nothing. We're still just friendly, just a little closer than before. Anyways, Rosalie told me something a few days ago, something that's been hurting her for awhile and I'm really worried about her."

"What is it?"

"Well, do you remember when Rosalie dated Jacob in fourth year?"

Lily felt her eyes widen. "She doesn't like Jacob, does she?" Lily didn't know why that thought worried her so much and why a heavy feeling came to her stomach. Glancing quickly down the table, Lily's eyes met Will's. He grinned when she caught her staring and waved. The feeling felt a little bit lighter then, but it was still there.

"No, no," Phoenix said hurriedly. "She dated Jacob to make someone jealous…"

The look on Phoenix's face told Lily that she didn't want to say who, so Lily tried to think of who. She knew it wasn't to make Aiden jealous, for Rosalie already said herself that Roxanne liked Aiden and there had been no negative reaction there. She had also already said she would never date Louis, and Hugo was taken, which meant...

"Oh Merlin," Lily said breathlessly. "Hunter? How? How did we never notice? Since fourth year? Oh, oh, poor Rosie. Well, what are we going to do about it?"

"Do about it?"

"Well, yeah! If Rosalie's hurting because of Hunter's obliviousness, then we need to help her. I have no idea what to do, but we need to do _something_."

"I know that," Phoenix agreed. Her hand, still on Lily's wrist, tightened slightly. "But, Lily...you know - um - if you need to tell me anything, you know you can, right? I won't judge."

Lily stared at Phoenix curiously. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm just saying. If there's anything - _anything _- you need to tell me, just to get it off your chest, then I'm listening."

"Um -" Lily gave Phoenix an awkward stare before standing up. "I don't think -"

"Anything from the masquerade?" Phoenix asked, sounding quite desperate now.

Lily froze. There was no way...no way that Phoenix could know anything about what happened at the ball.

"There's...nothing, Feens, really," Lily said. "Come on, let's go upstairs and watch that Wizards Chess match."

Phoenix and Lily stared at each other for a moment before Phoenix sighed heavily. "Alright, let's go."

Lily's heart and mind were racing as the two of them started to leave the Great Hall. There was just no way that Phoenix could know about what went on between Lily and Jacob at the ball. No one knew except for the two of them, and Jacob wouldn't have dared tell people about what had happened.

**XxXxX**

**There we go! **

**Again, sorry this is late and that nothing interesting really happened, but up next is the chapter about Jacob's full moon! Yay!**

**Anyways, review please!  
**


	28. The Full Moon

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

**So, exams are done now! *Cheers loudly* though I did get in trouble for running down the hall as I left the class after my last exam, yelling at the top of my lungs, "_I'M FREE_!" Apparently that's not a good thing to do when other people are _still writing _their exams. Oops.  
**

**XxXxX**

The first thing Lily felt when she woke up the next morning was antsy. Glancing outside the window, the sun was just beginning to rise, soaking the white grounds of Hogwarts in golden light. However, Lily was imagining that in a few hours, the sun would be gone again and the moon would rise, as full as can be, casting a silvery glow on everything. It was such a difference in what she was feeling. The sun, the light, the day, Lily hoped that it would stay forever, that the night and moon would never come so she wouldn't have to go through with a long night of unease.

Lily shook her head. She sat up in bed, crossed her legs under her warm covers, put her elbows on her legs and rested her chin in her hands. Blanca mewled softly, tiredly and crawled into Lily's lap, purring. Lily petted her back gently, running her hand from Blanca's head, all the way down her thin tail.

She was thinking selfishly. It would be an uneasy night for her, but she couldn't even imagine what it would be for Jacob having to deal a whole night alone, running around as a wolf, and waking up at dawn, not knowing what had happened.

Lily really did not want the day to begin.

It did though, and Lily felt herself standing by Jacob a lot more than she normally did. At lunch, she had dragged Will and his friends to sit with her and her friends so she didn't have to choose between her boyfriend and the boy that - she thought - needed her. Other people were starting to notice her proximity to Jacob as well; people they passed by in the halls and their friends. Will continued to have the curious, worried look on his face that made Lily feel guilty for not being with him alone like she promised him, so she had skipped her Ancient Runes class (she was so going to get a detention later), which she didn't have with Jacob anyways, and spent that hour with Will.

The had stolen food from the kitchens and snuck up to the Gryffindor common room, where Lily curled up in his arms on the couch, warm and content. It was those rare moments with Will that Lily felt that they would certainly last, but then she would remember that he had yet to meet her family, and that made her doubtful. Her family was capable of making more than one boy run away; all of Lily's female cousins had experience. Lily had never made it to the point of introducing a boyfriend to her family, for she wanted to be sure that he was worth it.

Finally, the end of the day came, then dinner, and then everyone was going to bed.

Lily was slowly climbing the steps of the girls staircase when a hand grabbed her wrist and pulled her back down the stairs. Jacob glanced around, making sure no one was listening before he leaned in close to her.

"You have the Map, right?" he asked.

Lily nodded. "I know the plan. I'll meet you down here, okay?"

Instead of looking scared or tense like Lily had expected him to be on the full moon, he appeared relaxed. He gently squeezed Lily's wrist. "You don't have to be nervous you know," he said with a grin.

"What?" she said, shocked. "I'm not nervous. _You _should be nervous. Who knows what could happen!"

But Jacob laughed a little. "Nothing's going to happen. Professor Scarta and Hagrid are on watch for me on the nights of the full moon. They make sure I don't come in the grounds. You'll be safe from me, so you don't need to worry. And…I don't know why, but I feel more calm tonight." He smirked cheekily at her. "Maybe it's because you're the one fretting over me tonight instead of one of the professors."

Lily glared up at him. "We had an agreement, Jacob. No comments."

Jacob threw his hands up in defence. "That wasn't me flirting with you, Lily. I'm just saying that I get to have a friend worrying about me. It's sort of calming."

Lily threw her head back with a groan. "Sorry," she said, dragging out the word. "It's just…this is so weird. I don't know what I'm supposed to do tonight. It's going to be so hard just sitting in the hospital wing with Madam Edona, wondering what the heck you're doing at that moment."

"You don't have to do this if you don't want to. You'll see me in the morning."

Lily could tell that the words he spoke were true, he didn't want to force her to do this for him, but she also heard the underlying hope in his words and she had already promised to him that she would be there in the hospital wing when he came in the morning. She knew that she wouldn't be able to sleep if she remained in her dorm anyways.

"No," she said firmly, not just to him but to herself, "no, I said I would. I'll meet you down here later."

**XxXxX**

It seemed that later took forever to come as Lily hid herself in the confines of her bed with the hangings shut, her wand lit, the Map open in her lap and Blanca purring contently beside her.

Lily pointed her wand towards the boys dorm on the Map, seeing the five dots labelled in each of their respected beds, except for Hunter's. Hunter's dot was perched at the opposite end of his bed, so he was either awake and sitting there, or just sleeping at an odd angle. It took half hour before Hunter's dot moved to the right spot on the bed, then another ten minutes before Jacob's dot moved towards the door of the dorm.

Lily quietly made her way out between the hangings of her bed, extinguishing her wand. Blanca meowed, but made no move to follow Lily, instead she rolled over onto her back, stretched out lazily. Lily breathed out, checking to make sure that the four other girls were sleeping before she tiptoed towards the door. The room and the floor was freezing, but Lily knew that she couldn't go searching for a sweater or a pair of shoes without crashing into something and waking someone up.

She cursed mentally when the door creaked, but no one stirred, so she shut it softly behind her and descended the stairs quickly.

"Ready?" Jacob asked when she appeared.

Lily nodded. She folded up the map and tucked it inside her shirt as they headed towards the portrait hole. The corridors were completely empty when they left the Gryffindor common room, Lily was surprised to see Professor McKnight standing at the end of the hallway, hands behind his back and only watching the corridors around him. When he saw Lily and Jacob, he made no moves towards them, but his eyes grew curious at the sight of Lily.

"All the professors know," Jacob told Lily as they began to descend the stairs towards the Entrance Hall. "Normally it's the Head Boy and Girl on patrol after hours, but on the nights of the full moon, they take turns watching the halls, making sure no student is out so they can't find out about me and so I can't hurt the other students if I somehow make it past Professor Scarta and Hagrid."

"They said that to you?" she asked, disbelief coating her voice. "About you not hurting the other students?"

Jacob chuckled. "Not exactly, but it was implied."

Professor Rosewood waited in the Entrance Hall. Her eyes flickered to Jacob, who nodded once, then looked to Lily with a smile. "Good evening, Lily," she said warmly.

"It's almost midnight, Professor," Lily said.

"Well, good morning, then," Professor Rosewood said and turned to Jacob. "And you have until twelve forty-three. That's the exact time of the full moon, so you need to get out there now. Professor Scarta already has a bag of clothes waiting for you and he'll find you in the morning, so stay where you are."

Jacob nodded. Professor Rosewood smiled at Lily again, then briefly touched Jacob's cheek before she began to ascend the stairs. Lily saw that the large entrance doors were open just enough for Jacob to slip through, and a cold breeze drifted inside, sending a shiver down her spine. Jacob glanced at the door, then to Lily.

"You better get going," she said, the words coming out with difficulty. She was suddenly very aware of the lump in her throat, a key sign that she was going to cry any minute. She cursed again mentally. Why was she crying? It wasn't like he was going off and she would never see him again. It wasn't as if he was going to die by becoming a werewolf tonight. But there it was, the worry that something terrible was going to happen and she wouldn't be able to do anything about it, for she wouldn't know if anything was wrong until dawn.

She wasn't afraid to admit that the next few hours were going to be the most difficult.

"Lily? Are you okay?" Jacob asked, bending his knees so he was eye level with her. When he saw that her eyes were beginning to water, his own grew large in surprise. "Whoa, whoa, Lily. Come on, what's the tears for?"

"I don't know," she admitted with a watery laugh, which sounded a bit hysterical to her. "I'm being stupid."

She flinched when Jacob's hands grabbed her upper arms, her skin searing with heat at the contact. He pulled his hands back as soon as he felt her move, his eyes filled with confusion and hurt. Lily let out another laugh. She had honestly lost it. Throwing her arms around Jacob's waist, she pressed her cheek to his chest, still feeling the heat through his shirt. Jacob hesitated a moment, then his arms came around her, holding her lightly as if worried that she would push him away at any moment. Lily couldn't blame him though. Before if he would have touched her, she would slap him, so of course it would be odd to him for her to actually be willing to hug him.

When she pulled away from him, she tried to wipe her watery eyes subtly, but it was pointless for he was watching her intently.

"Sorry," she muttered awkwardly. "But, you better go. We don't want you Changing in the middle of the Entrance Hall."

Jacob nodded. "Go to Madam Edona," he advised. "Get her to give you a Calming Draught or a Sleeping Potion. I'll be back in the morning."

He made a move as if to hug her again, but then stopped and shrugged off the sweater he wore. He pushed it into her hands with a shrug. "It gets cold in the hospital wing." And then he disappeared out the doors, pulling them shut behind him.

Lily breathed out heavily. She was definitely going to ask for a Calming Draught for her nerves were on end right then, her skin still warm from where Jacob had touched her. Until she hugged him, Lily hadn't realized just how much she had missed having her best friend. When he held her, it felt like first year again where she was planning epic pranks with Hunter and him, staying up late in the boys dorms and usually sleeping at the end of Louis's or Hugo's beds because she was too tired to make it all the way up to her own dorm.

Being held by Jacob - it was completely different than being held by Will. With Will, it was comfortable, gentle, calming. With Jacob, Lily didn't want to let go because she was scared he wouldn't come back - they were desperate, consuming.

Lily stared down at the sweater in her hands. It was thick, the insides of it warm, inviting. She slipped it on, feeling rather ridiculous as it fell to almost her knees and she was astounded by how much taller than her Jacob was. She laughed to herself when she remembered that the top of her head barely brushed his shoulder.

She clutched the sweater closed around her body, rubbing her bare left foot against her right calf to warm it up a bit before she started to head towards the stairs, feeling stupid that sher had forgotten to wear her slippers. Just as she put her foot on the first step, voices echoed down the stairs. Lily froze. It wasn't hard to recognize those voices. She stumbled away from the stairs, moving around to the side of the staircase so she was hidden in the shadows and pressed herself tightly against the wall.

Heels clicked on the steps as the people descended. Delta's blond hair was just visible from where Lily was hidden, and the other two voices told Lily that she was with Lyra and Hiro, but it seemed odd, for she couldn't hear Kaelan's voice and there were only three sets of shoes making sounds on the stairs.

Lily waited, hoping the Slytherins would keep going, but Lily knew that luck wasn't with her tonight when Delta's voice rang out to the others. "You two go on ahead. I need a minute."

The tone in Lyra's voice was sympathetic. "Alright, sweets. Don't worry about this, okay?"

"I'll be fine."

The Entrance Hall fell silent when Hiro and Lyra left, and Lily wondered briefly if Delta actually knew if she was there, but then, "Come out, come out, wherever you are, Potter."

Lily grimaced. Not one to back down and hide, Lily pushed herself away from the wall and pulled Jacob's sweater off quickly. She needed to have some dignity if she was facing Delta Savage. She came around the stairs, feeling her wand in the waistband of her pajama pants, to find Delta still dressed in her day clothes even though it was midnight, standing with her arms crossed over her chest and a smirk on her face.

"No need to worry, Potter, I'm not here to fight." she said.

Lily doubted it. There was barely ever a time when Lily came across Delta and it didn't end in a fight, and Darren wasn't there to save her this time.

"What are you doing up so late, Potter?" Delta asked innocently. "Waiting for someone? No…wait, is that Winchester's sweater in your hands? What were you doing with Winchester, Potter? Something your boyfriend wouldn't approve of?"

Lily glared at the blond Slytherin. "What do you want, Savage?" she hissed.

"Merely curious, Potter."

"Like hell you are. But since we're just being _curious_, why are you up, Savage?"

Delta shrugged. "Maybe I just like going for walks around the school on the night of the full moons. It's…_pretty_, don't you think. Sort of eerie too. You never know what could be out there right now."

Lily scoffed. "So where's your boyfriend? Did he finally realize how much of a bitch you are and dumped you?"

Delta ignored her comment. "Where's yours? And would he like to hear that you were out late with Winchester? I don't think he'd enjoy that very much."

"Mind your own business, Savage," Lily snapped, twisting Jacob's sweater in her hands to avoid whipping out her wand and hexing the girl in front of her. She could tell that Delta did actually have no intention of attacking Lily this time, but if she wasn't going to attack her, then she would at least try to rile Lily up as best she could to get her to attack the Slytherin. Lily hated to admit that Delta always knew just what to say to get on Lily's, already fried, nerves.

"Whatever you say, Potter," Delta said casually, turning her back to Lily and heading towards the stairs to the dungeons, "but to let you know, you're not the only one with permission to be out alone on these nights."

Delta left before Lily could say anything back, not that she could come up with a response to Delta's last words. What did she mean by not the only one? Why was she allowed to be out at night?

Lily shook her head. It was just Delta Savage. Delta was just trying to mess with her.

**XxXxX**

In the hospital wing, Madam Edona was not surprised to see Lily there. She explained that Jacob had come earlier, saying that Lily would be staying there that night. As Madam Edona was getting the bed next to the one Lily was going to sleep in ready, she abruptly stopped and looked outside the nearest window.

"It's time," she said quietly, then hurried towards the doors of the hospital wing and closed them, securing them with the lock.

"What?" Lily asked. "Why are you locking the doors?"

"Extra precaution, dear," Madam Edona explained, handing Lily a goblet filled with a Calming Draught. "But it's twelve forty-three."

Lily stopped with the goblet halfway to her mouth. At that exact moment in the Shrieking Shack, Jacob was transforming into a werewolf. Lily felt her stomach clench and a wave of nausea passed over her. She moved the goblet away from her lips, suddenly disgusted with the smells that were wafting out of it.

"No, drink it," Madam Edona encouraged. "It helps, trust me. I had to take a few when I first started treating Jacob. It's an awful thing that we just have to sit here and wait, but fretting over him won't help. Drink, then get some rest. I'll wake you at dawn."

Lily looked up at the wrinkled, kind face. Madam Edona's normally tight, white curls were flying everywhere, refusing to be tamed, but the matron didn't seem to care. She was wrapped in a dressing gown, looking tired but anxious.

"Drink," she said again. "I slipped some Sleeping Potion in there as well, so you'll be out within a minute."

Lily gazed down at the goblet again. Anything was better than the frantic knotting of her stomach. She downed the contents of the goblet, grimacing as she thought that all of it was going to come back up, but she managed to keep it down. Like Madam Edona said, she was out within a minute.

**XxXxX**

Lily jolted awake, gasping for breath. Madam Edona squeaked and reeled back in shock.

"Oh, dear, you scared the life out of me," she said to Lily. "I was just about to wake you. It's dawn and…dear, why are you smiling?"

Lily slowly lifted her hand to her mouth, feeling the curve it had to it. She realized that she was in fact smiling, but why? She tucked her hands into the pockets of Jacob's sweater that she wore and stared down at her blanket covered toes. Last night, she had another one of her dreams, but this one…it had been different. There had been the usual sense of frustration, but there was also excitement and hope, which had seemed odd. These dreams were beginning to annoy Lily. Not knowing when they would come, what they would be about, if they would leave her with a night of no sleep or somehow manage to get her to attack someone she knew, like she almost had Rosalie that one night because of all the foreign emotions running through her.

"Come along now, Miss Potter. Get up, Jacob will be arriving any second now."

Lily threw herself out of bed, wobbling a bit on her feet, but now she was wide awake. Out the window, Lily could see the sun rising, casting long shadows from the trees of the Forbidden Forest.

Lily jumped when someone banged on the doors of the hospital wing. Madam Edona hurried over and unlocked them, moving back as they were pushed open by Hagrid, with Professor Scarta supporting a half-conscious Jacob. Lily clapped her hands over her mouth at the sight of him. He looked…horrible.

He was dressed only in a pair of sweatpants that seemed two sizes too large for him. His bare feet barely brushed the ground as Professor Scarta tried to keep him standing. There was a large gash on his side, blood dripping down his side and stomach until it hit the waistband of his pants and soaked into the fabric. Hundreds of other little cuts covered his body and face, bruises as purple as the bags under his eyes. His black hair was soaked thoroughly with water, twigs scattered in it and mud coating his feet.

Lily moved out of the way as Professor Scarta helped Jacob into the bed, his blood staining the crisp white sheets. Lily felt the nausea pass over her again. Jacob looked like some boy out of a Muggle murder movie she had seen, on the brink of death, but Madam Edona, Hagrid and Professor Scarta didn't seem to be worrying too much about it.

She stumbled forwards when Jacob's eyes fluttered open, tired and dull, but a slight smile came to his lips when he saw her there. "Hey, Lils," he mumbled, his voice hoarse. He groaned as Madam Edona began to poke and prod at the cut on his side. "I think I had a rough night," he said to Lily. "My wolf was a little…excited this time. Took no caution in anything he did, I don't think. Normally it's not this bad, so don't look so disgusted. It's insulting."

Lily couldn't help but laugh weakly. Even looking as awful as he did, Jacob managed to retain some of his humour. "Sorry," she apologized, but her mouth continued to have its disgusted twist, "it's just…oh, it's so gross."

Jacob yelped as Madam Edona placed a thick bandage, dripping in some yellow liquid, to his side. "If only it was just gross. It hurts like hell."

"Looks like it," Lily agreed. She slowly reached forwards and took his hand that was hanging over the side of the bed. Even though he had just spent an entire night out in the freezing cold, his fingers had managed to keep the heat they held. She squeezed his hand encouragingly.

"Miss Potter," Madam Edona caught her attention. "I need to speak with Professor Scarta and Rubeus for a moment, can you apply this paste to Jacob's cuts? It will heal all the little things instantly."

Lily accepted the clear paste and dropped Jacob's hand so she could put some of the paste on his shoulder. Before her eyes, every little cut where she put the paste closed it quickly, leaving clean, unmarked skin.

"That is so cool," she muttered to herself, but Jacob heard and laughed. His eyes continuously shut and opened again until Lily said, "Go to sleep, Jacob. I don't need you to entertain me right now. You need rest if you're going to be up to lessons later."

Jacob nodded. His head tilted and he stared at her for a moment, then his blue eyes closed and he breathed out heavily. "Thanks, Lily," he said. In a second, Lily could hear his breathing level out and his chest rose and fell steadily.

Lily continued to heal all of the small cuts as Jacob slept, picking twigs out of his hair as she went. It was awkward at first to smear the paste on his chest, but he stayed asleep as she did, until his chest was clear of any marks, except for the one white scar near his collarbone that she saw on the train at the beginning of the year and the large werewolf bite on his right shoulder. Lily was so astounded with what one night of running around as a wolf could do to a person. Why was his wolf so…reckless, so harmful, so deadly? She didn't think it fair that he had to go through with the full moon nights alone where he had no control because he couldn't have an Wolfsbane to help him. It wasn't fair.

Lily paused. She could feel the Marauders Map in the front of her shirt, poking uncomfortably into her chest. She had said a month ago that she would, but she was still uncertain then, now though, staring at Jacob so injured in the blood soaked bed, Lily made up her mind. She knew that it was going to be difficult, getting the notes, getting everything together, getting everything right, but she couldn't help but feel that it would be worth it if Jacob wouldn't be alone on the full moon.

"He was more determined than ever to make it inside the school," Professor Scarta's voice said quietly. Lily could tell that she wasn't supposed to be hearing this conversation, so she continued her task, making sure that it wasn't obvious that she was listening in.

"Odd, it was," Hagrid added gruffly. "He made it pas' us a few times. Almost made it ter the school, bu' we stopped him."

Madam Edona's voice was worried. "Do you think what Minerva said was true?"

Lily couldn't see it, but she knew that Professor Scarta nodded, for Madam Edona sighed. Lily could feel all their eyes look over at her, but she kept her back firmly turned to them.

Professor Scarta's voice was almost a whisper and Lily struggled to hear it. "Keep her locked in here with you every full moon, okay? If not here, then we also need to be sure that she never leaves the Gryffindor tower. It's not safe for her. Who knows what he would do if he ever got a hold of her."

The three adults fell silent then. Lily's shoulders were stiff, her eyes focused on Jacob's closed lids.

Had they been talking about her? Who was she not safe from?

Jacob?

**XxXxX**

**And there! Lily's first full moon, waiting for Jacob. **

**Review please!  
**


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